Saudi Aramco will use cash, debt to pay dividends, says CEO
Saudi Aramco will use cash and debt to pay its dividend of $18.75 billion for the first quarter of this year, the company’s chief executive said on Thursday, after the top oil firm sealed a major acquisition deal.
“It will be a combination of both,” Amin Nasser told reporters on a conference call.
“We would like to use our free cash definitely most of time, but other debt instruments from banks or bonds are also available for us as we have a strong balance sheet,” he said.
Nasser was speaking a day after Aramco completed its purchase of a 70% stake in petrochemicals company SABIC from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), for $69.1 billion and extended the payment period by three years to 2028.
