CAIRO  - ‍Saudi Arabia's National Debt Management Center ​said on Wednesday it had finalized the arrangement ⁠of a $13 billion, seven-year syndicated loan to ⁠help finance power, water ‌and public utilities projects.

The transaction is a part of the ⁠kingdom’s medium-term debt strategy, which aims to diversify funding sources and meet financing needs over the medium to long ⁠term.

"This transaction aims ​to leverage market opportunities to execute alternative government financing activities ‍that contribute to economic growth, including the financing ​of development and infrastructure projects aligned with Saudi Vision 2030," the center said in a statement. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, is more than halfway through its Vision 2030 blueprint for economic transformation.

The strategy, introduced by de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin ⁠Salman in 2016, calls ‌for hundreds of billions of dollars in government investments to wean the ‌kingdom’s economy off ⁠its dependence on hydrocarbon revenue.

(Reporting by Yomna ⁠Ehab; Editing by Rod Nickel)