Saudi mulls upping US oil investments

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Khalid Al Falih on Wednesday heaped praise on US President Donald Trump’s energy policies, saying the Gulf country could increase its investments in the US oil and gas industry.

“We have no problem with the growth of American indigenous oil supply,” Al Falih said in an interview with the BBC. “As long as they grow in line with global energy demand, we welcome them and we have billions of dollars invested in refining and distribution in the United States, and we may be increasing that investment on the back of pro-industry, pro-oil and gas policies of the Trump administration.”

Though Trump’s relationship with the Muslim world got off to a rocky start with an executive order on January 27 barring citizens of several Muslim countries from entering the US, Al Falih nonetheless said he was optimistic about the US-Saudi relationship.

In recent weeks, Saudi Arabia, which was not among the countries on Trump’s blacklist, has significantly reduced its oil production, exceeding the cuts it had agreed to under a deal between <a href=’https://theenergyyear.com/companies-institutions/opec/’>OPEC and non-OPEC producers.