Riyadh - Mubasher: Saudi businessman Prince Al Waleed bin Talal said that Aramco’s initial public offering (IPO) will generate around $100 billion a year to the Saudi government.

The billionaire added in an interview with CNBC Arabia on Monday that the offering may include a stake bigger than 5% of the largest oil company in the world.

Earlier, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said that the IPO will take place as planned next year.

The IPO is scheduled for the second half of 2018, the CEO said in another interview with the same network, noting that the time and the exchange of the IPO are yet to be announced.

Nasser negated that Chinese firms are favorites to acquire the 5%, in a plan that will involve delaying the listing and the IPO.

It was recently reported that Chinese state-owned oil companies PetroChina and Sinopec have written to Saudi Aramco in recent weeks to express an interest in a direct deal. Both companies are part of a state-run consortium including China’s sovereign wealth fund.

wo weeks ago, the Financial Times cited informed sources as saying that Aramco was considering abandoning launching the IPO on a global stock exchange and doing a private offering for the world’s biggest sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors.

The Saudi company replied via its official Twitter account saying that "FT report on Saudi Aramco IPO is entirely speculative. All listing venues under review for optimal decision,IPO process is on track for 2018."

Last month, Saudi minister of finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan said that Aramco’s highly anticipated IPO was to be implemented according to plan in 2018.

Aramco has previously posted that the listing is proceeding “on track” after a report the oil company was mapping out contingency plans for a possible adjournment into 2019.

In April 2016, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman stated that Aramco’s IPO would take place in 2017, but may be postponed to 2018.