Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris’ Fertiglobe plans IPO

OCI N.V., the Euronext-listed chemical producer controlled by Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), are planning an initial public offering of 13.8 percent of the shares in Fertiglobe, their fertilizer joint venture, on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

According to Reuters, the deal will be the first onshore listing of a free zone company in the UAE.

Fertiglobe’s share price will be decided after a book-building process, and the offering size could be amended at any time before pricing. The shares will be accessible to both retail investors in the United Arab Emirates and qualified institutional investors from across the world.

Fertiglobe was established in 2019 after OCI and ADNOC merged their ammonia and urea assets, with OCI holding a controlling 58-percent stake and ADNOC the remaining 42 percent.

After Fertiglobe’s IPO, Sawiris’ OCI N.V. is expected to remain the majority shareholder, while ADNOC will indirectly own 36.2 percent.

Sawiris, Africa’s second richest man with a fortune Forbes estimates at $8.6 billion, is the executive chairman of OCI N.V.