Saudi Arabia's state-run oil and gas company Saudi Aramco has announced plans to focus international oil and natural gas exploration. This represents a turning point for the energy giant, which has historically stuck to developing Saudi Arabia's large low-cost reserves. The company will push into overseas exploration and production, i.e. upstream activities, but will also build up a portfolio across the value chain and expand its activities in the midstream and downstream sectors. Investments in LNG projects in the Russian Arctic and the United States are also being considered along with opportunities in Australia.
This process has already started as Saudi Aramco is investing in overseas refineries and petrochemicals plants such as the Motiva refinery in Port Arthur (Texas, US). In January 2019, it announced its intention to acquire a 19.9% stake in South Korea's fourth largest oil refining company Hyundai Oil.
The company's planned stock market flotation (initial public offering or IPO) that was announced in January 2016 and initially expected in late 2018 has been postponed until 2021. Instead, the company will focus on issuing bonds to help finance its planned acquisition of a 70% controlling stake in the domestic petrochemical company SABIC, which is currently held by Saudi Arabia's sovereign fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF).