LONDON: Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) is targeting investments in Africa as the petrochemicals giant taps rising demand for plastics worldwide.
The Riyadh-headquartered chemicals maker reported a 5.3 percent rise in third quarter net income to SR6.1 billion ($1.62 billion) on Sunday, which it attributed to better sales prices and volumes.
The world’s fourth-biggest petrochemicals company is looking for future investment opportunities in Africa, which is a promising market to maintain sales growth, Reuters reported citing its chief executive.
Yousef Al-Benyan also told reporters that the outlook for business in the US, Asia and China was still broadly positive despite some challenges relating to high energy prices.
The vast Saudi petrochemical industry is expected to experience a wave of consolidation this year with SABIC expected to be at the center of that process.
Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest national oil company, is working on buying a stake in SABIC, Aramco CEO Amin Nasser told the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh last week.
Hoever, anti-trust regulations will mean that the company’s planned acquisition of a controlling stake in SABIC is expected to take time, he said.
Petrochemicals are set to account for more than a third of the growth in world oil demand to 2030, and nearly half the growth to 2050, adding nearly 7 million barrels of oil a day by then, the IEA said.
“Our economies are heavily dependent on petrochemicals, but the sector receives far less attention than it deserves,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director.
“Petrochemicals are one of the key blind spots in the global energy debate, especially given the influence they will exert on future energy trends. In fact, our analysis shows they will have a greater influence on the future of oil demand than cars, trucks and aviation.”
Demand for plastics – the key driver for the petchem industry – has outpaced all other bulk materials (such as steel, aluminum, or cement), nearly doubling since 2000, the agency estimates.
SABIC eyes Africa expansion as profits rise
SABIC eyes Africa expansion as profits rise
- Prices and volumes rise in third quarter
- Global demand shows positive trend
Saudi Absher platform delivers over $5.3bn in annual economic impact
RIYADH: The Saudi government’s Absher digital services platform generates more than SR20 billion ($5.3 billion) in annual economic impact, highlighting the scale of savings created by the Kingdom’s transition from paper-based government procedures to digital services, according to the Ministry of Interior.
Speaking to Al-Eqtisadiah, Bandar bin Mashari, assistant minister of interior for technology affairs, said the savings reflect broader efficiency gains from digitization.
This comes as government services previously delivered through manual, paper-driven processes have moved onto a unified digital platform used by millions of citizens and residents.
“Absher is one of the oldest platforms that has had a direct impact on strengthening the efficiency of spending and in opening new avenues for providing added value services,” said Mashari.
He said the platform’s economic impact is closely linked to the government’s digital transformation agenda, which aims to reduce operational costs while improving service delivery across public agencies.
The assistant minister further stated that the economic impact was at SR17 billion and grew to SR20 billion according to the ministry’s latest data.
He added that Absher has completed a shift in its financial structure, transitioning from direct state capital funding to a sustainable financing model based on self-generated income.
Mashari also said the Ministry of Interior is moving to expand its digital capabilities beyond service delivery, with a focus on security and financial protection.
Authorities are working toward building a secure digital ecosystem designed to combat financial fraud and crime, he said, as digital transactions and online government services continue to expand.
Absher is the flagship digital services platform of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Interior and one of the Kingdom’s earliest large-scale e-government initiatives.
Launched in 2010, the platform provides citizens, residents, visitors, and businesses with access to hundreds of government services through a unified digital portal and mobile application.
Its services span civil affairs, passports, residency and visa services, as well as traffic and vehicle transactions, and business administration, significantly reducing the need for in-person government visits.
Absher is widely used across the Kingdom, handling millions of electronic transactions each month and serving as a core pillar of Saudi Arabia’s broader digital transformation and Vision 2030 agenda.
