Saudi Aramco told Bloomberg that the company’s planned acquisition of a 70% stake in Sabic is vital for its growth. Aramco CEO Amin Nasser told the news outlet that aside from the Sabic deal, Aramco is earmarking $500bn to invest in the next 10 years, including $160bn for natural gas and $100bn for downstream developments.
“We need a major acquisition for us to be in different markets quickly,” Nasser told Bloomberg. Earlier this month, reports surfaced that Saudi Aramco was considering different methods of paying for the deal, and Nasser told Bloomberg that “all financial instruments are on the table.”
He noted the importance of diversifying across the value chain, telling Bloomberg that “you can absorb market volatility when you are balanced between upstream and downstream. This is where our strategy is going.”
However, Prince Mohammed bin Salman said in October that the Sabic deal is the cause of the delay in Aramco’s initial public offering, which was pushed to 2021 at the latest.
Nasser commented on the IPO, saying that “we are committed for the IPO. It’s about timing.”
He expects healthy demand in the coming year.
