Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman patronizes SABIC’s signing of a Letter of Intent with Saudi Aramco

SABIC and Aramco declare intent to develop an industrial park in Yanbu; SABIC signs three additional MoUs during NIDLP launch

Under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, the Crown Prince, Vice President of the Council of Ministers, Minister of Defense and Chairman of the Council for Economic Affairs and Development, SABIC signed a Letter of Intent with Saudi Aramco on Jan 28, to discuss the development of a downstream industrial and logistics park in Yanbu. The signing took place on the sideline of the inauguration ceremony of the National Industrial Development & Logistics Program (NIDLP). 

The companies previously selected Yanbu as the location for their upcoming crude-oil-to-chemicals complex, a joint venture between SABIC and Saudi Aramco. 

The program, which is one of 13 programs meant to enable Saudi 2030 vision, aims to achieve unprecedented growth and integration among four major sectors of the Kingdom's economy: industry, mining, energy and logistics.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by HE Eng. Khalid bin Abdul Aziz Al-Falih, Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources, and a group of princes and senior officials, in the presence of Dr. Abdulaziz Aljarbou, SABIC Chairman, Yousef Al-Benyan, SABIC Vice Chairman and CEO, and a number of SABIC directors and executives. 

During the ceremony, and under patronage of the Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources, SABIC also signed three memoranda of understanding (MoUs). The MoUs were signed by Fouad Mousa, Vice President, Local Content and Business Development, and included a MoU with Dussur Company, to establish of a distribution platform for SABIC liquid chemical products; an MoU with the Global Company for Chemical Industries to support the manufacture of specialized materials for drilling, exploration and oil treatment; and an MoU with King Abdullah International Center for Medical Research, Health Affairs, Ministry of National Guard, for the development of national medical industry in the field of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment. 

Dr. Aljarbou said that the direct supervision of His Highness the Crown Prince for the programs of the Saudi 2030 Vision reflects the care of Saudi’s wise leadership in revitalizing the national economy, enhancing the competitiveness of its components and improving the business environment. This, he said, is being done through stimulating the private sector, creating investment opportunities, launching quality initiatives and projects, as well as other distinctive measures that result in comprehensive and sustainable development. "SABIC, as a key component and enabler of the Kingdom's economy, with its human capabilities and research and scientific potential in the field of manufacturing and investment, will play an important role in the implementation of this national program. We will utilize our expertise and services for developing the Saudi industrial sector, and promote the Kingdom's position and leadership in the global chemical industry” Dr. Aljarbou said. 

Al-Benyan said that the program is promising, stressing that it will contribute to enabling the ambitious vision of transforming the Kingdom into a pioneering industrial power and a global logistics platform. “SABIC is a key enabler in achieving the objectives of the Vision 2030 and supporting SMEs,” he said, highlighting the company’s pivotal role in driving manufacturing localization efforts, especially in the downstream sector, as well as developing local suppliers of materials and services. SABIC’s position enables the company to benefit from size and scope of its business to support local content development efforts.

Al-Benyan added that SABIC's national initiative, Nusaned, provides an attractive environment through close cooperation with government bodies, enables opportunities from conception to realization, and develops the supplier base of the Vision’s priority sectors and clusters under the national strategy for industry. “Supporting and empowering SMEs is one of the main objectives of SABIC's Local Content and Business Development Unit,” he added.

NIDLP includes more than 330 initiatives in place to achieve more than one-third of the objectives of the Kingdom's Vision 2030. The program aims to attract investments of SAR 1 trillion and 600 billion value. It will have a significant impact on the Kingdom's economy and will develop 11 priority industries.

Abdullah Al-Juhany
Acting Leader, Global Communications