Shares of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority increase around 16 percent on Tuesday in the Gulf region’s largest first public offering since Saudi oil giant Aramco in 2019.

DEWA shares rise 19 percent in the first minutes of trading before closing up 15.72 percent at 2.87 dirhams ($0.78), as the Dubai stock exchange has fallen 0.5 percent.

The Dubai-owned utility last week said it had increased 22.3 billion dirhams ($6.1 billion) in the Gulf’s biggest IPO since Aramco’s world-record foundation.

Some nine billion shares, an 18 percent stake, were listed, with the initial price set at 2.48 dirhams ($0.68).

The deal, in which more than 65,000 institutional and retail investors participated, values the company at 124 billion dirhams ($33.9 billion), the company said.

The record for the largest public listing in the Gulf, and in the world, is held by Aramco, which raised $29.4 billion by listing a 1.7 percent stake on the Saudi Stock Exchange in December 2019.

The emirate of Dubai, which lacks the huge oil lay aside exaggerate by a few of its neighbors, has diversified its economy by focusing on finance, tourism, and trade.

But it is facing increased rivals in the region, notably from Saudi Arabia, which is also seeking to decrease its dependence on oil and gas.