Bloomberg: 5 Companies Compete for Aramco's Gas Pipeline Bid

Bloomberg said that Saudi "Aramco" is seeking more than $15 billion for a stake in the gas pipeline in one of the largest liquidations by the energy giant. The state-owned company will inform the bidders whether they have reached the next round of bidding in the coming days.

The world's largest oil company plans to raise billions of dollars by selling more stakes in its business as it seeks to maintain annual profits of $75 billion, a major source of funding for the government of Saudi Arabia. A group of investors led by EIG Global agreed to invest $12.4 billion in Aramco's oil pipelines in June, in one of the largest infrastructure transactions of the year.

A gas pipeline deal may be structured in a similar way to an oil pipeline deal, in which investors bought a minority stake in a new Aramco subsidiary with asset leasing rights, sources familiar with the matter said to Bloomberg.

Aramco's master gas system is a network of pipelines that connect its production to processing sites throughout the country. The infrastructure has a capacity of about 9.6 billion cubic feet of gas per day, according to Aramco's annual report.

Apollo Global Management and Brookfield Asset Management 

"Apollo Global Management and Brookfield Asset Management companies are among the parties that submitted first-round bids for a potential multi-billion dollar stake in Saudi Aramco's natural gas pipeline network," Bloomberg added.

BlackRock, EIG Global Energy Partners LLC and Global Infrastructure Partners

"BlackRock, EIG Global Energy Partners LLC and Global Infrastructure Partners also submitted non-binding offers for the asset last week."

The final decisions have been made yet, and Aramco can still decide to hold the asset. Other contenders may also appear for the stake, with some bidders likely to join given the size of the assets.