India may invest in IPO of Saudi Aramco

India on Monday said that it could invest in Saudi Aramco when the company floats its shares next year. The purchase of a stake in Aramco would enable Indian state refiners to set up a refining venture with the Saudi giant and strengthen ties with the world’s largest oil producer.

About three Indian state refiners were planning to build a new refining complex with an annual capacity of 60 million tonnes on the country’s west coast.

Next year, Aramco plans to list around 5 per cent of its stocks on multiple exchanges. It plans to raise around $100 billion via the share listing, which could value the world's largest oil producer at as much as $2 trillion.

India, the third biggest oil consumer in the world, imports 86 per cent of its oil needs from OPEC nations to feed its 4.6 million barrels per day (bpd) refining capacity. The country has a plan to raise its refining capacity to 6.2 million bpd by 2023.