Saudi Arabia, Russia said to sign deals during King Salman’s visit

Saudi Arabia is expected to sign a number of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with Russian companies during King Salman’s official visit to Moscow next week, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing sources in the energy sector.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi Aramco) and Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) will sign a memorandum of understanding with Russia's largest petrochemical producer Sibur Holding to discuss opportunities to build petrochemical plants in the two countries, a source said.

The deal will be one of several expected to be signed during King Salman's visit, which will be his first to Moscow since he ascended the throne in 2015.

Saudi Arabia and Russia have worked closely together over the past year to reach an agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers to cut global output and boost prices.

Other agreements, including a MoU between Saudi Aramco and Russia’s largest independent gas producer Novatek, are expected to be signed to explore investment opportunities in the gas sector.

On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that Aramco was in talks with Sibur Holding over setting up a joint venture to make synthetic rubber in the Kingdom.

Russia has been interested in Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy sector, where the Kingdom has been seeking investments of up to $50 billion to help produce 10 percent of the electricity it needs from renewable sources, one source said.