ABU DHABI (Reuters) – Saudi Aramco will issue bonds which will probably be in the 10 billion range, Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said on Sunday.

Khalid al-Falih, speaking at a conference in Abu Dhabi, did not specify the currency of the planned debt issuance but last week he said at an event in Riyadh that the bonds – which would be Aramco’s debut in the international debt markets – are likely to be denominated in U.S. dollars.

The Saudi oil giant will issue the bonds in the second quarter of this year, he said last week.