Alec Holdings, an engineering and construction group based in Dubai, will list 20 per cent of its shares as part of an initial public offering on the Dubai Financial Market amid a listings boom in the UAE.
The Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), the principal investment arm of the Dubai government, is currently the sole shareholder of Alec and is offering one billion ordinary shares through the offering, the company said in a prospectus released on Monday.
The subscription period is expected to run from September 23 to 30, with tranches open to individual subscribers, professional investors outside the US, and eligible employees from Alec and ICD.
The final offer price is expected to be announced on October 1 and the company expects to start trading on the DFM on or about October 15.
“This IPO is a natural next step in Alec’s journey,” said Hussain Nasser Lootah, the company's chairman. “We enter the public markets from a position of strength, supported by a buoyant regional construction sector underpinned by ambitious national agendas in our home market and in Saudi Arabia, and a favourable economic environment.”
Founded in 1999, Alec became a subsidiary of ICD in 2017 and, along with its core construction business, offers services spanning fitout, mechanical, electrical and plumbing, modular construction, data centre solutions, energy solutions, technology, facades, renewables and equipment rental.
It has projects across the UAE and Saudi Arabia including One Za’abeel, a mixed-use development in Dubai; indoor theme park SeaWorld Abu Dhabi; and Dubai Hills Mall.
The company said revenue rose 56 per cent annually in the first half of the year to Dh5.36 billion ($1.45 billion), with net income reaching Dh239 million.
It has a pipeline of large-scale projects with a Dh35.4 billion backlog as of end-June, with 79 per cent of the current backlog secured in the past two years.
Alec intends to distribute a cash dividend of Dh200 million in April 2026, and a cash dividend of Dh500 million for the financial year ending December 31, 2026, payable in October 2026 and April 2027.
Following that, it expects to distribute cash dividends on a semi-annual basis (in April and October of each year), with a minimum payout ratio of 50 per cent of the net profit generated for the relevant financial period.
IPO demand and future growth
Alec expects strong investor demand for the IPO, chief executive Barry Lewis told media on Monday.
“We’ve had talks with numerous investors in the build-up to this, be it locally, in the UAE, in the region, and internationally. There's been very good feedback to date from investors across all sectors, across all geographies.”
The company is focused on data centres to grow its business, which Mr Lewis said is “an exciting space where you potentially can get a higher margin than operating in some of the other sectors”.
Data centre space is a “massive growth opportunity” in the short to medium term, both in the UAE and in Saudi Arabia, he added.
The company is also currently involved in the construction of Stargate UAE, an AI hub that was unveiled this year.
Saudi opportunities
Alec is also looking at more opportunities to grow its business in Saudi Arabia, Opec's top oil exporter and the Arab world’s largest economy, in projects including expansion of Riyadh airport, Expo 2030 Riyadh as well as in Diriyah Gate and Qiddiyah developments.
“There’s quite a lot of opportunities at the moment [but] our focus is within Riyadh, within Qiddiyah … and also Diriyah gate.”
Diriyah is a $63.2 billion mixed-use development spread across 14 square kilometres near the Saudi capital, Riyadh, with residences, offices, hotels and retail units.
IPO boom
The new listing comes amid increased activity in the UAE's capital markets on strong investor demand as well as government efforts to boost the equity markets.
There were seven IPOs across the country last year, including by Talabat Holding, retailer Lulu Group, ADNH Catering, NMDC Energy and Alef Education. IPOs in the UAE accounted for 47 per cent, or $6.2 billion, of total stock launch proceeds in the Gulf region last year, according to PwC data.
The IPO momentum continued this year with the listing of Alpha Data on ADX and Dubai Residential Reit on the DFM. Alpha Data, a UAE technology company, raised $163 million from its offering, while Dubai Residential Reit's IPO size reached $584 million.
Across the wider Gulf, $2.3 billion was raised from four IPOs in the second quarter of this year, a slight decrease from $2.6 billion raised from eight listings in the same period last year, according to PwC.
“The long-term outlook for the GCC IPO market remains promising. A recovery of the equity markets in the second quarter, stabilisation of volatility and strong pipeline contributing factors to this promising outlook,” it said in a report.
“However, it will highly depend on the global macroeconomic and geopolitical stability.”
Last week, it was also reported that Dubai Investments is considering listing one of its units in the emirate. Chief executive Khalid bin Kalban indicated that an IPO for Dubai Investments Park is being planned for early 2026, according to a Bloomberg report.
