Sumitomo Chemical finalizes Petro Rabigh stake sale, forecasts JPY 35 bn pre-tax profit

Sumitomo Chemical announced the completion of its partial sale of Class A ordinary shares in Petro Rabigh to Saudi Aramco on October 8, 2025. This transaction reduces Sumitomo Chemical’s Class A equity stake from nearly 37.5% to 15%, with Saudi Aramco becoming the largest shareholder at approximately 60%. Subsequently, Sumitomo Chemical also completed its subscription to newly issued Class B ordinary shares in Petro Rabigh on October 21, 2025, alongside Saudi Aramco, to support Petro Rabigh's financial restructuring.

The company anticipates a pre-tax profit of approximately JPY 35 billion in its consolidated financial statements for the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026. This includes an estimated JPY 50 billion gain on the sale of Class A shares and a JPY 15 billion valuation loss on the newly acquired Class B shares. For its non-consolidated statements, Sumitomo Chemical expects a JPY 17 billion valuation loss on the Class B ordinary shares, with the impact from the Class A share sale being immaterial.

Petro Rabigh, established in September 2005, operates in the manufacture and sale of refined petroleum and petrochemical products in Saudi Arabia. Post-transaction, its Class A shares are held by Saudi Aramco (60%), Sumitomo Chemical (15%), and public investors (25%), while Class B shares are held equally by Saudi Aramco (50%) and Sumitomo Chemical (50%).