Saudi Aramco announced the signing of a share purchase agreement to acquire a 70% majority stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, in a private transaction for SAR 259.125 billion (or SAR 123.39 per share), which is equivalent to USD $69.1 billion. The remaining 30% publicly traded shares in SABIC are not part of the transaction, and Saudi Aramco has no plans to acquire these remaining shares. The transaction is subject to certain closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.

Headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, SABIC has global operations in over 50 countries with 34,000 employees. In 2018, SABIC’s consolidated production volume across its various business units was 75 million metric tons, and recorded net income of USD $5.7 billion, annual sales of USD $45 billion, and total assets of USD $85 billion.

The acquisition is in line with Saudi Aramco’s long-term strategy to drive growth through an enhanced Downstream portfolio by increasing global participated refining capacity from 4.9 million to 8-10 million barrels per day by 2030, of which 2-3 million barrels per day will be converted into petrochemical products. This Downstream portfolio will consume significant quantities of Arabian crude oil.