Saudi Aramco signs deals worth $50 bln with US firms

Saudi Aramco will sign initial accords and joint-venture agreements worth about $50 billion (SAR 188 billion) with American companies on Saturday, agencies reported, citing chief executive Amin Nasser.

Sixteen agreements with 11 companies – including memoranda of understanding (MoUs) concerning joint ventures – are to be signed today, Nasser said during a conference on the sidelines of US President Donald Trump’s Saudi visit.

The firms that Aramco will be signing deals with include General Electric, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, KBR, Jacobs Engineering Group, Nabors Industries, Weatherford International, McDermott International, and Rowan Companies, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The agreements include a joint venture between Aramco and Jacobs Engineering to manage business projects in Saudi Arabia, and a plan by McDermott to move some of its ship fabrication facilities from Dubai to a shipbuilding complex in Saudi Arabia, which will be built by Aramco, executives told Reuters.

Trump is currently on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, as part of an eight-day tour that will also include Israel, Italy, and Belgium. The American president’s Saudi visit aims to bolster US ties with Muslim nations.