Saudi Arabian miner Amak seeks $332m from IPO

Saudi Arabia’s Al Masane Al Kobra Mining Co. is seeking to raise as much as $332m from an IPO, joining a string of firms tapping the kingdom’s equity market.

The initial public offering’s price range has been set at SAR58 ($15.46) to SAR63, according to a statement. Institutional book-building for 19.8 million shares started Wednesday and ends on March 1.

It’ll be followed by a three-day retail offering starting March 9.

Saudi Arabian companies raised almost $9.3bn from share offerings last year, making it the most active IPO market in the Middle East and Africa behind Israel, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The most recent wave has already seen a digital security firm owned by the kingdom’s wealth fund draw about $57bn in orders from institutional investors.

Privately held Al Masane Al Kobra, also known as Amak, would be joining state-controlled miner Maaden on the country’s stock market with a listing. The company mines for copper, zinc, silver, gold and other base metals, and owns multiple exploration sites in the southwest region of Saudi Arabia, according to its website.

Al Rajhi Capital is managing the IPO for Amak.