Saudi Arabian petroleum giant, Saudi Aramco, is in advanced talks for an all-stock deal to acquire a stake in Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL) oil refining and chemicals business.
The Economic Times reports that Saudi Aramco is discussing purchasing a roughly 20 per cent stake in Reliance’s petroleum unit for about $20 billion to $25 billion worth of Aramco shares.
While Saudi Arabia is a leading oil exporter, India is a booming market for it.
For Aramco, this deal with RIL would boost sales of crude to India. For Reliance, this transaction would help secure a steady supply of oil for its refineries besides making RIL a stakeholder in Aramco.
Though a $20 billion to $25 billion deal is humongous for the Indian economy, based on Aramco’s market valuation of about $1.9 trillion, this deal would give Reliance a stake of around just 1 per cent.
It must be noted that, in the 44th Annual General Meeting of RIL, Mukesh Ambani announced that Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the Chairman of Saudi Aramco, will join the RIL board as an Independent Director.
Saudi Aramco traces its beginnings to 1933, when a Concession Agreement was signed between Saudi Arabia and the Standard Oil Company of California (SOCAL).
Later renamed Aramco (the Arabia American Oil Company), the company’s crude oil production hit 500,000 barrels per day in 1949.
By 1962, it reached another milestone, with cumulative crude oil production reaching 5 billion barrels.
In 1988, the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) was officially established as a new company to take over all the responsibilities of Aramco.