By Reem Shamseddine and Tom Arnold
KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia/DUBAI, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Oil and gascompany Saudi Aramco
Morgan Stanley and HSBC are among banks that have receivedthe request for proposals, one of the sources told Reuters, withthe other adding that the invitation was to evaluate Aramco'sbusiness and help it with measures surrounding the share sale.The listing of Aramco is a central plank of the government'sambitious plan to transform the kingdom by enticing investmentand diversifying the economy away from a reliance on oil.
Aramco's chief executive Amin Nasser said in October that2018 was being targeted for the flotation of up to 5 percent ofthe company, though the exact size of the offering will bedetermined by the Saudi Supreme Council.
The first source told Reuters that appointment of banks wasexpected before the end of 2017.
Morgan Stanley declined to comment. HSBC declined tocomment. Aramco was not immediately available to comment.Speaking in October, Nasser also said Aramco had yet to finalisethe location of the listing and was currently reviewing severalmarkets including New York, London, Hong Kong and Japan.
Bloomberg reported in April last year that Aramco hadselected JPMorgan Chase & Co and Michael Klein as advisers onthe IPO.