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Saudi Arabia issued permits for 725 industrial projects in the first nine months of 2022 as part of plans to diversify its oil-reliant economy, according to official data.
The new permits bought the total industrial projects in the world’s largest oil exporter to 10,728 at the end of Sept, with total investments of 1.37 trillion Saudi riyals ($265 billion), the Industry and Mineral Resources Ministry said in a report.
In Sept, the Ministry issued permits for 79 industrial projects with a value of around 3.1 billion riyals ($826 million), the report showed.
National investors accounted for nearly 84 percent of the projects in Sept while the rest were either foreign-owned or joint national-foreign ventures, it said.
Licensed projects in the first 9 months covered light and medium industries, including metals, chemical, electric and electronic systems, paper and home appliances.
(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)
