Saudi Arabia could raise billions of riyals from privatisation

Saudi Arabia could raise billions of riyals over the next four to five years by privatising state assets as the kingdom seeks to boost its finances that have been hit by a slump in oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic.

The world’s biggest oil producer plans to sell assets in the education, healthcare and water sectors, Finance Minister Mohammed Al Jadaan said Wednesday during a virtual forum organised by Bloomberg.

Saudi Arabia raised almost $30 billion from the sale of shares in oil producer Saudi Aramco last year, and recently sold a stake in two grain mills. Otherwise, progress on plans to privatize large parts of the economy that were announced several years ago has been slow.

While the Saudi government is focusing on containing costs, it also transferred $40 billion from reserves held by the central bank to pay for an investment spree by its sovereign wealth fund.

The Public Investment Fund has acquired stakes in companies including Citigroup Inc., Facebook Inc., the Walt Disney Corp., and concert promoter Live Nation Entertainment Inc. The investments were made during a market rout as economies around the world were shut down to halt the spread of coronavirus.