Saudi energy chief to visit Gwadar tomorrow, likely sign MoU to set up oil refinery

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: The energy and power chief of Saudi Arabia is expected to arrive in Gwadar, Balochistan, on Saturday, official in the Petroleum Division informed media.

According to the official, Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih, the Kingdom’s minister of energy, industry, and mineral resources, will likely sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Pakistan during the visit to set up an oil refinery in Gwadar.

The Petroleum Division also said it was expected that the representatives of Islamabad and Riyadh would sign additional MoUs pertaining to the bilateral cooperation in the mineral resources.

In addition to this, Saudi Arabia will also be invited to make investments in Balochistan’s Reko Diq Mine project that deals in gold and copper.

To welcome Al-Falih, who is also the current chairperson of Maaden, a Saudi Arabian mining company and former chairperson at the famed Saudi Aramco, a delegation of top officials led by Petroleum Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan is already in Quetta from where they would travel to Gwadar to meet the Saudi party.