Saudi Arabia-based Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) is in talks with banks about a debut international bond issue this year, sources said on Thursday, which would be the first overseas debt offering from the country in a year, Reuters reported. The offering, which one source said could raise up to $1 billion, would be a quasi-sovereign issue as Apicorp, an energy investment company, is owned by the governments of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, namely Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Libya, Iraq, Qatar, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt and Syria. The company has held talks with local and international banks, two sources said.
