* Aramco to appoint lead banks in coming days - sources
* JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley among contenders - sources
* Citi, Goldman Sachs may be managers - sources
* Local listing expected before international listing
(Adds Saudi energy minister comments)
By Hadeel Al Sayegh, Davide Barbuscia and Sylvia Westall
DUBAI, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco is expected to give
lead roles to JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and
National Commercial Bank for its planned initial
public offering (IPO), a source familiar with the transaction
said.
It will also likely add Citi, Goldman Sachs,
HSBC and Samba Financial Bank to the list of
banks managing the transaction, a first phase of which could
take place locally before the end of this year, said the same
source and two other sources familiar with the matter.
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on
Monday the kingdom was aiming for the Aramco IPO "as soon as
possible", speaking on the issue for the first time since
replacing Khalid al-Falih at the ministry.
Aramco is preparing to sell up to a 5% stake by 2020-2021,
in what could be the world's biggest IPO. It is still meeting
banks pitching for roles on the deal, and is expected to appoint
the advisers in the coming days, two of the sources said.
Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan and HSBC were chosen to play a
leading role in the transaction before the process was halted
last year.
Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and JPMorgan declined to comment.
Aramco declined to comment to a separate Reuters request on
the likely appointment of JPMorgan, and did not comment on a
subsequent request on the likely roles of the other banks.
Citi, Samba, Morgan Stanley and National Commercial Bank did
not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The IPO is a centrepiece of Saudi Arabia's economic
transformation drive to attract foreign investment and diversify
away from oil.
The kingdom is gearing up to fast-track a local listing of
Aramco by bringing in the head of Saudi Arabia's sovereign
wealth fund, Yassir al-Rumayyan, who was recently named new
chairman of the state oil giant and leads an executive committee
overseeing plans to float shares in Aramco.
Should Aramco proceed with a local listing this year,
international banks on the deal would be tasked with promoting
the company to international investors looking to buy its shares
on the Saudi main exchange, Tadawul.
It is not clear yet on which international exchange Aramco
would list, but sources have told Reuters the board had
determined that listing in New York would carry too many legal
risks to make it a realistic option.
Aramco raised $12 billion this year in its first
international bond issue, obtaining over $100 billion in demand.
Many saw that deal as a relationship-building exercise with
international investors before its IPO, which has faced repeated
delays.
The debt sale was expected to help fund Aramco's $69.1
billion acquisition of a 70% stake in petrochemicals firm Saudi
Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) from the Saudi sovereign wealth
fund, a deal that many saw as a transfer of government funds
aimed at boosting the Saudi Crown Prince's economic agenda.
(Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh, Davide Barbuscia and Sylvia
Westall; Additional reporting by Joshua Franklin in New York and
Dahlia Nehme in Abu Dhabi; Editing by Christopher Cushing and
Edmund Blair)