Page 27 - Saudi Arabia

Govt working on PLI schemes for more products to boost manufacturing: Goyal

The government had rolled out PLI schemes for 15 key sectors, including technology, textile, automobile, pharmaceutical drugs, speciality steel, electronics, among others

Essar to invest $4 bn in steel plant in Saudi Arabia in 3 years: Official

The Essar Group is looking to invest USD 4 billion in setting up an integrated flat steelworks plant in Saudi Arabia in the next three years, a senior company official said. The plant, which will cost Saudi Riyal 15 billion (USD 4 billion), is scheduled to break ground by this year-end and be completed by the end of 2025, said Amar Kapadia, general manager for corporate planning at Essar. The new 4-million tonnes per annum integrated flat steelworks plant will have continuous casting and hot strip capacity, 1-million tonnes of cold rolled coil capacity, and a tin plate line in Ras Al-Khair Industrial City on Saudi Arabia's east coast. The new facility will also have two direct reduced iron plants, each with a 2.5-million tonnes a year capacity. Essar signed a memorandum of understanding with the Saudi Arabia's National Industrial Development Centre (NIDC) in October 2021, and an agreement with the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu (RCJY) for land allocation in December. "We ha

Pakistan will 'absolutely not' default on debts despite floods: FinMin

No default coming, says Finance Minister Miftah Ismail who expects current account deficit widening to be capped at $2 bn; Ismail says $5-bn investment from UAE, Qatar, Saudi coming this fiscal year

Saudi confirms rollover of $3-bn deposit for a year: State Bank of Pakistan

The State Bank of Pakistan on Sunday said Saudi Arabia has confirmed the rollover of a USD 3 billion deposit for one more year. The deposit was set to mature on December 5, the SBP tweeted, adding that the amount was placed with the central bank as part of its foreign exchange reserves. "Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) has confirmed a rollover of $3bn deposit maturing on 5 Dec22 for one year. Deposit is placed with SBP and is part of its forex reserves. This reflects the continuing strong and special relationship between KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) and Pakistan," the bank tweeted. The agreement for the deposit was originally signed in November 2021 with an aim to improve the SBP's foreign exchange reserves. Saudi Arabia had agreed to revive its financial support to Pakistan in October 2021, including about USD 3 billion in safe deposits and USD 1.2 billion worth of oil supplies on deferred payments. Pakistan has been facing a shortfall in foreign reserves and the rupee has been

Goyal to visit Saudi for ministerial meet of economic, investment committee

India and Saudi Arabia are expected to formulate a plan of action for strengthening bilateral cooperation in different areas and projects, including the west coast refinery project, an official statement said on Saturday. The issue will come up during the meeting between Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Salman on September 18-19. They would co-chair the inaugural ministerial meeting of the Economic and Investments Committee. The two ministers are expected to discuss the progress made under the various joint working groups of the economic and investment committee, the commerce ministry said. "Both sides are expected to formulate plan of action for further strengthening bilateral cooperation in an array of priority areas and projects, including the West Coast Refinery Project, Trans-ocean grid connectivity, Green Hydrogen, Food security, energy security and pharmaceuticals," it said. They may also accelerate ...

Indonesia's plan to shut coal plants over next 30 yrs struggles for support

The Southeast Asian country plans to eliminate 15 Gigawatt of coal-generation over that time, requiring more than $600 billion of capital support, said Erick Thohir

Top headlines: AI puts in place transformation plan;BPCL divestment stalled

The carrier, which plans to induct 30 new wide-body and narrow-body aircraft, on Thursday announced 'Vihaan.AI', a comprehensive transformation plan with a detailed road map for next five years

Saudi Arabia overtakes Russia to be India's no 2 oil supplier in August

Saudi Arabia emerged as the second-biggest oil supplier to India after a three-month gap, overtaking Russia by a thin margin, while Iraq retained the top spot in August

PM Modi renews invitation to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed to visit India

Ahead of the National Day of Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has conveyed his greetings to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and renewed the invitation to him to visit India at an early date. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar who just concluded his first official visit to Saudi Arabia and held talks with the top leadership here discussed measures for enhancing bilateral relations across all domains, including political, trade, energy, defence and security, the Indian embassy here said in a press release. He met the Saudi Crown Prince in Jeddah on Sunday and handed over a written message from Prime Minister Modi, conveying greetings on the upcoming National Day of Saudi Arabia on September 23 and reiterating invitation to the Crown Prince to visit India at an early date, the press release said. Crown Prince Mohammed paid his first State visit to India in February 2019. During the meeting, bilateral relations between the two countries and opportunities for enhancing th

India has a powerful case to be permanent member of UNSC: EAM Jaishankar

India has a powerful case to be a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the principal UN organ must adapt to the evolving global conditions, not only to fulfill its objectives of maintaining international security but also to remain relevant, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is in Saudi Arabia on his first visit to the Gulf Kingdom. India has been at the forefront of the years-long efforts to reform the Security Council saying it rightly deserves a place as a permanent member of the Council, which in its current form does not represent the geo-political realities of the 21st Century. Jaishankar said there is a broad global consensus over the need to reform the Council, particularly as it does not reflect the realities of the world, asserting that an expanded Council is not only in India's favour, but also in favour of other unrepresented areas. India as the largest democracy, fifth largest economy, nuclear power, technological hub, and tradition of global .

Jaishankar meets Saudi Arabian Crown Prince, apprises him of bilateral ties

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday met with the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud in Jeddah and apprised him of the bilateral ties between the two countries.

External Affairs Minister Jaishankar to go on a 3-day visit to Saudi Arabia

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia beginning Saturday to discuss ways to further strengthen relations between the two countries. During the visit, Jaishankar will co-chair with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud the first ministerial meeting of the Committee on Political, Security, Social and Cultural Cooperation (PSSC), established under the framework of the India-Saudi Arabia Strategic Partnership Council. The two ministers will undertake a comprehensive review of the entire bilateral relationship and will discuss the progress under the four Joint Working Groups of the PSSC Committee Political & Consular; Legal & Security; Social & Cultural and Joint Committee on Defence Cooperation. The meetings of these Groups and senior officials have been held over the past few months, an External Affairs Ministry statement said. It said both sides will also discuss regional and international issues of ...

Explained: How have India's crude import sources changed over time?

The top three countries have changed significantly before and after the military action in Ukraine

Egypt's president meets Saudi FM to discuss bilateral ties, regional issues

For his part, the Saudi Foreign Minister highlighted the kingdom's commitment to strengthening "the strategic cooperation" with Egypt at various levels

Saudi Arabia's central bank hires crypto chief to boost digital ambitions

Saudi Arabia has until now taken a more cautious approach on virtual assets, with officials raising concerns about their speculative nature.

Saudi court sentences woman to 45 years in prison for social media use

A Saudi court has sentenced a woman to 45 years in prison for allegedly damaging the country through her social media activity, according to a court document obtained on Wednesday. It was the second such sentence that has drawn scrutiny of the kingdom this month. Little is known about Nourah bint Saeed al-Qahtani, who hails from one of the biggest tribes in Saudi Arabia and has no apparent history of activism. An official charge sheet seen by The Associated Press and human rights groups describes her case as involving her social media use, though Saudi officials did not respond to requests for comment. The sentence follows international outcry over a similar 34-year prison sentence handed down to Salma al-Shehab, a Saudi doctoral student at Leeds University in England. Earlier this month, a specialised criminal court delivered the 45-year sentence under the kingdom's broad counterterrorism and cybercrime laws. That court, which normally handles political and national security cas

24 foreign firms show interest in petroleum business in Sri Lanka: Minister

Twenty-four companies from India, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, the US, China, Russia, the UK, Malaysia, Norway, and the Philippines are interested in the petroleum business in Sri Lanka

Saudi Arabia announces investment of $1 bn in cash-strapped Pakistan

This announcement regarding the fresh investment comes days after the State Bank of Pakistan informed about USD 4bn in financing for Pakistan from friendly countries

Saudi Arabia to organise second edition of Global AI Summit in Sept

Saudi Arabia will hold the second edition of the Global AI Summit in September focusing broadly on human capacity development, smart cities, healthcare etc.

Oil prices jump nearly 4% on Tuesday on OPEC+ supply tightening fears

Underlining tight supply, the latest U.S. inventories weekly reports are expected to show crude stocks declining 900,000 barrels last week