Saudi Aramco seeking global expansion via joint ventures, says CEO

Saudi Aramco plans to expand globally via joint ventures with partners in countries like the United States, India, Indonesia, Vietnam and China as it prepares for an initial public offering, Reuters reported, citing chief executive Amin Nasser who was speaking to journalists during a media visit to the company's Dhahran headquarters.

Saudi Arabia is expected to sell up to five percent of Aramco in an initial public offering (IPO) and the company is expected to play a big role in developing industrial projects aimed at diversifying the economy.

"We will meet the call on Saudi Aramco," Nasser said, adding that the company produced an average of 10.2 million bpd of crude in 2015 and that the latest stage of its expansion project at the southeastern Shaybah oil field would be finished "in a couple of weeks."