Saudi Arabia is deciding between NEOM and the World Cup

Two banks said on Wednesday that the Saudi Public Investment Fund, the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, will sell a nearly two percent stake in Saudi Telecom Company (STC) in a deal that could raise up to $1.1 billion.

Goldman Sachs and the Saudi National Bank, which manages the deal, said in a statement that the share price, which is around 100 million shares, will be determined through an accelerated order book building process.

The two banks indicated that the Public Investment Fund, which sold a six percent stake for $3.2 billion in the telecommunications company in 2021, will retain a 62 percent stake in the company after the sale, from which STC will receive no proceeds any The final results will be announced tomorrow, Thursday.

The sovereign wealth fund, which manages assets estimated at around $1 trillion, has been among the most active debt issuers in the Gulf this year to raise money as Saudi Arabia moves on forward with their economic transformation plan.

The economic plan, called “Vision 2030,” aims to diversify the economy away from dependence on oil through investments to develop new sectors and provide more stable sources of income.

However, amid falling oil prices and production affecting government profits, the Kingdom has begun a spending review where some projects will be canceled or reduced and others will be prioritized.

The governor of the Public Investment Fund said last month that the fund intends to reduce its foreign investments by around a third. A filing with regulatory agencies on Wednesday said the fund reduced its stake in Japanese company Nintendo to 6.3 percent from 7.5 percent.

Saudi Telecom Company shares rose 4.45 percent since the start of the year and closed 0.4 percent lower at 41.1 Saudis ($10.94) per share on Wednesday.