Saudi Aramco partners with Petrovietnam and Taulia  

The signing ceremony for the Aramco and Petrovietnam agreement. Aramco
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Updated 30 October 2024
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Saudi Aramco partners with Petrovietnam and Taulia  

  • Deal formalized during Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to the Kingdom

RIYADH: Saudi energy giant Aramco has agreed to work with Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, known as Petrovietnam, in storage, supply, and trading across the companies’ energy and petrochemical segments.

Formalized during Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Saudi Arabia and signed at the eighth Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, the Collaboration Framework Agreement aims to explore initiatives that could optimize operations and drive value, according to a press release. 

Mohammed Al-Qahtani, Aramco’s downstream president, said: “We look forward to exploring multiple opportunities with Petrovietnam that complement Aramco’s global downstream ambitions.” 

Petrovietnam CEO Le Ngoc Son emphasized the strategic importance of the agreement, calling it “evidence of the strong cooperative relationship between Petrovietnam and Aramco.” 




Saudi Arabia is hosting the eighth edition of the Future Investment Initiative summit in Riyadh. AN/Abdulrahman bin Shalhuob

In a related development, Aramco has also partnered with Taulia, a SAP-owned fintech company specializing in working capital management solutions.  

Supported by the Saudi Industrial Development Fund, the partnership will create one of the world’s largest supply chain financing programs, designed to enhance liquidity for Aramco’s suppliers.  

This program aims to provide a cost-effective financing alternative, improve cash flow forecasting, and strengthen Aramco’s supply chain resilience. 

Ziad Al-Murshed, Aramco’s chief financial officer and executive vice president of finance, highlighted the strategic importance of the new fintech solution, saying: “At Aramco, we recognize the crucial role our suppliers play in contributing to our business continuity.”  

He added that the platform will offer suppliers “a unique and competitive financing opportunity” and allow banks to participate as finance providers, “enhancing the solution’s scale and viability.”


Saudi tourism employment surpasses 1m as hospitality sector expands 

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Saudi tourism employment surpasses 1m as hospitality sector expands 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s tourism workforce surpassed 1 million in the third quarter of 2025, underscoring the sector’s rapid expansion as the Kingdom continues to develop its hospitality infrastructure and visitor economy. 

According to the latest Tourism Establishments Statistics report released by the General Authority for Statistics, the total number of employees in tourism activities reached approximately 1,009,691 in the third quarter of 2025, marking a 6.4 percent increase compared to the same period in 2024, when employment stood at 948,629. 

The growth in employment comes alongside a significant rise in the number of licensed tourism hospitality facilities, which increased by 40.6 percent year on year to reach 5,622 in the third quarter. Of these, serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities accounted for 52.6 percent, while hotels represented 47.4 percent. 

The robust growth reflected in the latest tourism statistics aligns directly with the goals of Vision 2030, as the Kingdom aims to double tourism’s gross domestic product contribution to 10 percent. The sector is also seeking to create 1.6 million jobs, and attract 150 million visitors annually by 2030.

The report showed that non-Saudi employees made up the majority of the tourism workforce, numbering 764,520 and accounting for 75.7 percent of the total. Saudi nationals employed in the sector reached 245,171, representing 24.3 percent of all tourism workers. 

In terms of gender distribution, male employees dominated the sector with 875,658 workers, while female employees totaled 134,033, making up just 13.3 percent of the workforce. 

Hotel performance showed positive momentum, with the average room occupancy rate rising to 49.1 percent during the quarter, an increase of 2.9 percentage points from 46.1 percent in the same period a year earlier. 

In contrast, serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities experienced a slight dip in occupancy, recording 57.4 percent compared to 58 percent in the same quarter of 2024. 

The average daily room rate in hotels decreased by 3.6 percent to SR341 ($90.9), down from SR354 in the third quarter of 2024. Meanwhile, serviced apartments and similar facilities saw their average daily rate rise by 4.1 percent to SR208, up from SR200 a year earlier. 

The average length of stay in hotels was 4.1 nights, down 1 percent from 4.2 nights in the third quarter of 2024. For serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities, the average stay was 2.1 nights, reflecting a marginal decrease of 0.2 percent year-on-year. 

The statistics draw on administrative records, surveys and secondary data to capture activity across the Kingdom’s tourism sector, GASTAT said.