Nigeria gets refineries investment, forex pledge from Saudi Arabia

Nigeria and Saudi Arabia on Friday agreed to a series of investment and cooperation deals, including a pledge by the Saudi government to invest in the revamp of Nigeria’s oil refineries and provide financial support to sustain the government’s foreign-exchange reforms. The agreements were reached at a bilateral meeting between Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the Saudi-Africa summit in Riyadh. The Government of Saudi Arabia pledged investment in the revamping of Nigeria’s refineries. It also indicates interest in providing financial support to sustain the government’s determination of reforming the foreign exchange. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made these pledges at a bilateral meeting with President Bola Tinubu on the sidelines of the Saudi-Africa Summit in Riyadh. 

Mr Muhammad Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, said this in a statement in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He said that to support the Central Bank’s ongoing reforms of Nigeria’s foreign exchange regime, the Saudi Government would make available a substantial deposit of foreign exchange to boost Nigeria’s forex liquidity. He said that Salman commended the economic reforms of Tinubu, expressing the commitment of the Saudi Government to supporting these reforms in order for Nigeria to reap the full benefits. According to him, Saudi Arabia is very eager to see Nigeria thrive under Tinubu, and realise its full potential as the economic giant of Africa. Salman also highlighted Agriculture and Renewable Energy as areas where Saudi Arabia would invest to help the country attain food and energy security. The Crown Prince said that the investment in Nigeria`s refinery would be led by the Saudi state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco. He gave the assurance that the revamping of the refineries would be completed within a two- to three-year timeframe.  The Crown Prince also expressed appreciation to Nigeria for its active participation in and support for OPEC+. Tinubu thanked the Saudi leader for the proposed investments, and pledged that Nigeria would ensure judicious management and oversight. The two leaders vowed to work together over the next six months to develop a comprehensive road-map and blueprint to deliver on the agreed investments and outcomes.

Also, Tinubu and Salman spoke on the need to strengthen security cooperation to mitigate terrorism, illegal migration and other crises, not just in Nigeria, but across West Africa and the Sahel region. The two leaders also discussed existing economic and socio-cultural cooperation between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, and agreed to open new vistas in bilateral relations. The bilateral meeting was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Amb. Yahaya Lawal and the state Chief of Protocol, Amb. Adekunle Adeleke. (NAN)