PHOTO: FILE
The newspaper said that both the countries have finalised a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the construction of the Saudi Aramco oil refinery, following a 15-member Saudi delegation’s visit to Gwadar last week.
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A high level Saudi delegation will visit Pakistan in February during which both the countries are expected to sign a number of investment deals. Pakistan authorities, according to the newspaper report, expected $15 billion investment from Saudi Arabia.
Last week, “a 15-member delegation of Saudi Arabia visited Gwadar as part of the finalisation process of the MoU for Aramco oil refinery,” Haroon Sharif, Minister of State and Chairman of Pakistan Board of Investment (BoI), told Arab News.
“We have finalised the MoU for the construction of Aramco oil refinery,” Sharif said, adding that “the agreement will be signed at an ‘appropriate time’,” he added. “We are going to sign MoUs with Saudi Aramco and Acwa Power within few weeks.”
According to the BoI chief, Aramco would construct a petrochemical complex, housing the multi-billion dollar oil refinery, while Acwa Power would invest in renewable energy sector. Both the projects would bring in an investment between $6-10 billion, he said.
“I am expecting around $15 billion investment from Saudi Arabia in the next three years,” Sharif told the newspaper, adding: “We estimate that roughly around $40 billion investment will be made by these three countries [Saudi Arabia, UAE, and China] in the next three to five years.”
During the recent visit of the Saudi delegation to Gwadar, the Chairman of Gwadar Port Authority, Dostain Khan Jamaldini, gave a briefing about the current developments, including the port, progress on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Gwadar Master Plan.
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