Aramco has advanced its strategic downstream expansion with the acquisition of an additional 22.5 per cent stake in Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Company (Petro Rabigh) from Sumitomo Chemical Corporation (Sumitomo) for $702m (SR7 per share).
Following the transaction, Aramco becomes Petro Rabigh’s largest shareholder with an equity stake of approximately 60 per cent, while Sumitomo retains 15 per cent.
Aramco said the transaction reflects its commitment to partners and affiliates as it continues a downstream strategy focused on value creation, business integration and portfolio diversification.
Aramco downstream strategy
The company noted that the deal also enhances its ability to support the transformation programme underway at Petro Rabigh, which includes targeted asset upgrades to improve the yield of high-margin products and enhance plant reliability.
Hussain Al Qahtani, Aramco Senior Vice President of Fuels, said: “Petro Rabigh is a key player in the Kingdom’s downstream sector and this additional investment by Aramco reflects strong belief in its long-term prospects.
“It also underscores Aramco’s focus on downstream expansion and value creation. We look forward to exploring closer integration with Petro Rabigh, with the aim of unlocking new opportunities and complementing Petro Rabigh’s broader transformation objectives, which include upgrading its product mix, enhancing asset reliability and optimising operations.”
Capital injection
As part of the transaction, first announced in August 2024, Aramco and Sumitomo agreed to inject $1.4bn to partly prepay Petro Rabigh’s debt, supporting its future growth opportunities and strengthening its balance sheet.
This injection will involve the issuance by Petro Rabigh of Class B shares, which will be fully subscribed to by Aramco and Sumitomo.
Through the Class B share issuance, the partners can inject fresh capital without altering Petro Rabigh’s existing governance structure or diluting the voting power of other shareholders.
Aramco and Sumitomo have also waived a total of $1.5bn in shareholder loans to Petro Rabigh (completed in two phases in August 2024 and January 2025), improving its capital structure and partially remediating accumulated losses.
Strategic significance
The transaction reinforces Aramco’s long-term objective to expand its downstream and chemicals portfolio, strengthening integration across refining, petrochemical, and marketing operations within the Kingdom.
By increasing its stake and supporting Petro Rabigh’s financial restructuring, Aramco positions itself to capture greater value from high-margin products while advancing Saudi Arabia’s broader industrial diversification goals under Vision 2030.
