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Saudi Arabian ACWA Power has signed agreements with nine Chinese entities that will lay the ground for financing, investment and construction of the utility provider's global clean and renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia, as well as in the Belt and Road Initiative countries.
The memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed during the 1st China Arab Summit and coincided with Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the kingdom that began on Thursday.
The strategic partners from China include Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Bank of China, SPIC Huanghe Hydropower Development Company, China Southern Power Grid International, Power China International Group, China Energy International Group, Jinko Solar Company, Sungrow Power Supply Company and Jolywood Solar Technology Company, ACWA Power said in a statement on Friday.
Mohammad Abdullah Abunayyan, Chairman of ACWA Power, said: "As a leading developer of power, water and green hydrogen assets worldwide, and being headquartered in a Belt and Road Initiative country, we are in a unique position to support both the energy transition and economic transformation envisioned by Saudi Arabia’s forward-looking and iconic Vision 2030, as well as China’s Belt and Road initiative."
Earlier on Friday, Saudi Aramco signed an MoU with China's Shandong Energy Group to explore collaboration on integrated refining and petrochemical opportunities in China.
Saudi Arabia and China have also signed a slew of other deals in several sectors, including green energy, information technology, cloud services, transportation and logistics. No values were indicated, although Saudi state media reported that the deals worth a total of about $30 billion were expected to be signed on Thursday.
A memorandum was also agreed with China's Huawei Technologies on cloud computing and building high-tech complexes in Saudi cities. Huawei has participated in building 5G networks in most Gulf states.
(Writing by Brinda Darasha; editing by Cleofe Maceda)
