Saudi sells state flour mills

Saudi Arabia yesterday kicked off the sale of its flour mills, one of the first privatisations of the kingdom and a litmus test for other large state asset sales to follow.

Saudi’s state grain buyer SAGO said it would start accepting applications for qualification of potential interested investors on Aug. 26.

The kingdom will also make an announcement regarding the timeline for the qualification process on the same day, SAGO said in a statement.

HSBC Saudi Arabia ― the financial advisor for the privatisation ― said the launch of the qualification phase preceded the potential bidding phase.

The sale of Saudi’s flour milling sector is part of a wide-reaching overhaul of its economy and has drawn interest from some of the world’s largest agribusiness firms.