Kuwait Petroleum Corp. is hiring JPMorgan Chase & Co. to help lease part of its pipeline network, according to people familiar with the matter.
KPC aims to raise as much as $7 billion through the deal which would help bankroll the company’s vast investment plan, Bloomberg previously reported. Centerview Partners LLC is already working with the state-backed firm as independent financial adviser, people familiar with the matter have said.
KPC and JPMorgan declined to comment.
The KPC transaction will likely resemble similar deals involving state-owned energy entities in neighboring Gulf states, the people said. Typically, investors such as major infrastructure funds acquire a minority stake in a pipelines subsidiary and obtain leasing rights over the network, while the issuer retains majority ownership and operational control.
Deliberations are ongoing and no final decisions have been made, the people said. The plan would also still require the final approval of the government of Kuwait, which is OPEC’s fifth-biggest producer.
KPC’s pipeline plans coincide with a surge of foreign interest in the Gulf state, which is taking steps toward opening up its economy. Global heavyweights including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Carlyle Group Inc. are looking to set up offices in Kuwait, joining Blackrock Inc., Bloomberg reported this week.
KPC’s investment program, which began in April 2024, includes plans to spend as much as $50 billion on boosting oil production capacity toward a 4 million barrel-a-day target by 2035.
Chief Executive Officer Sheikh Nawaf Al-Sabah told Bloomberg News this week that funding for KPC’s $55 billion investment plan will be supported by cash reserves, conventional loans, potential lease and leaseback deals, in addition to profits retained from the previous two fiscal years.
Progress on the KPC deal comes just weeks after BlackRock Inc.’s Global Infrastructure Partners signed a $11 billion deal to lease the infrastructure serving the Jafurah gas project and then rent it back to Aramco for 20 years.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. sold a 40% stake in its oil pipeline network to BlackRock Inc. and KKR & Co. in 2019, though an entity based in the emirate bought back that stake. Adnoc also sold a stake in its gas pipeline unit to an investor group led by GIP, while an investor group led by BlackRock acquired 49% of Aramco Gas Pipelines Co. some years ago. Earlier this week, KKR bought a stake in Adnoc’s gas pipelines subsidiary.
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