Aramco Hunts for Asia Deals to Boost Refining and Chemicals - Bloomberg
Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil exporter, is seeking refining and chemicals deals in Asia as it looks to rapidly expand the business and secure long-term buyers for its crude.
The company is looking at China and India for more acquisitions, president of the downstream unit, Mohammed Al Qahtani, said. The majority of Aramco’s crude is sold in Asia, and demand for oil and related products is expected to keep expanding in the region, he said.
The state-run company, which has made more than $80 billion of downstream investments since 2016, is already making moves in China. It bought a stake in one company last year and is in talks for two others. Saudi Arabia sees demand for petrochemicals that are used to make goods such as plastics continuing to rise over the coming decades, even as oil’s use in transportation is likely to wane with the global energy transition.
“Really, the big growth markets for us are China, India and southeast Asia,” Al Qahtani said in an interview in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The company is looking for “organic and inorganic” opportunities, he said, referring to acquisitions and expanding existing projects. “As we speak today we have teams in China negotiating deals.”
Talks in China are proceeding faster than in India, where Aramco is in discussions with partners and customers for “actual investments on the ground,” Al Qahtani said, declining to give more details.
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