CEO Amin Nasser

Amin Nasser, President and CEO of Saudi Aramco, revealed that talks are ongoing with several Chinese entities with regard to investing in ‘huge’ partnerships, which will be announced within one to two years. 


 

In a statement to Al-Arabiya TV, Nasser confirmed that the Kingdom has a firm relationship with China, which has been marked by prosperity in recent years, adding that this has allowed the two countries to form strong partnerships and cooperate in projects that promote economic growth.


 

The company’s interest in the Far East markets includes several countries with high consumption, including South Korea, said the CEO, pointing to the giant Shahin project, whose cost amounts to SAR 26 billion, which comes as part of the company’s vision to the future and its global footprint and programs for converting liquids into chemicals through new technologies developed by the company and for which it has intellectual property rights.


 

Elsewhere, Nasser forecasts the global demand for energy and petrochemicals to continue to increase in the long term, indicating that Aramco is working on developing production technologies, as a sustainability fund was established at a value of SAR 5.6 billion to invest in technology that can support the energy transition in a stable and comprehensive manner. He also noted that the size of the company’s funds associated with technology and entrepreneurship has exceeded SAR 13 billion.


 

Nasser also expected that the company’s capital expenditures in 2023 will range between SAR 169-206 billion, including foreign investments, with an increase in investment spending until about the middle of the current decade.


 

The oil giant recorded a 51% leap in profit, after minority interest, to SAR 598.4 billion in 2022, compared to SAR 395.2 billion a year earlier. In Q4 2022, net profit, after minority interest, grew 9% year-on-year to SAR 126.5 billion, according to data available with Argaam.