RIYADH: The Saudi government offered sukuk denominated in Saudi riyals worth SR2.83 billion ($755 million) in its first issuance for the year 2022, the National Debt Management Center announced on Tuesday. The issuance comes under the Kingdom’s riyal-denominated sukuk program. The first tranche had a size of SR1.25 billion and matures in 2030 while the second tranche was valued at SR1.59 billion and matures in 2034. Saudi Arabia collected a total amount of SR75.2 billion of sukuk in monthly issuances for the previous year. The Saudi Finance Ministry established the sukuk program through the NDMC in July 2017. Saudi public debt stood at SR948.3 billion at the end of this year’s third quarter, according to the ministry’s latest quarterly budget report. Domestic debt accounted for 59.1 percent while external debt made up 40.9 percent of the debt. In its 2022 budget statement, the ministry predicted that public debt will reach SR938 billion next year.