The Saudi government has vowed to invest in the renovation of the refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna, as well as to provide financial support to the government’s foreign exchange reforms.
HRH Mohammed Bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, made these assurances during a bilateral meeting with President Bola Tinubu on the margins of the Saudi-Africa Summit in Riyadh.
According to a statement signed on Friday by Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, the Saudi government also pledged support for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s ongoing reforms of the foreign exchange regime, promising to make a substantial deposit of foreign exchange available to boost Nigeria’s forex liquidity.
Prince Bin Salman praised President Tinubu’s economic changes and expressed the Saudi government’s commitment to supporting these reforms and allowing Nigeria to realize the full advantages. According to him, Saudi Arabia is keen to see Nigeria grow under President Bola Tinubu and reach its full potential as Africa’s economic powerhouse.
In addition to this, Prince bin Salman identified Agriculture and Renewable Energy as areas of investment interest for Saudi Arabia in Nigeria, with the goal of assisting the country in achieving food and energy security.
The Crown Prince intimated that the Saudi state-owned oil corporation, Saudi Aramco, will lead the refinery investments in Nigeria, with the refurbishment expected to be finished within two to three years.
The Crown Prince also thanked Nigeria for its strong involvement in and support for OPEC+.
President Tinubu expressed gratitude to Saudi King Salman for the proposed investments and vowed that Nigeria will maintain prudent administration and control. The two leaders decided to collaborate for the next six months to create a detailed road map and blueprint to deliver on the agreed-upon investments and outcomes.
President Tinubu and Crown Prince bin Salman also spoke on the importance of strengthening security cooperation to combat terrorism, illegal migration, and other challenges not only in Nigeria, but throughout West Africa and the Sahel area.
The two presidents also addressed existing economic and socio-cultural cooperation between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, and decided to expand bilateral relations in new directions.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, the Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Ambassador Yahaya Lawal, and the state Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Adekunle Adeleke, all attended the bilateral meeting.