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| Korean Industry Minister Lee Chang-yang, first row center, and Saudi Arabian Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih, first row right, attend an investment forum between Korea and Saudi Arabia at the headquarters of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul, Nov. 17. Yonhap |
Business leaders of Korea and Saudi Arabia discussed ways Thursday to deepen their economic partnership, citing climate change, space technology and bio as new areas the two sides can cooperate on as future investment.
The two nations also signed some 20 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) between the governments and companies on infrastructure, chemicals, renewable energy, gaming and various other industries.
The Korea-Saudi Business Council, co-hosted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of Saudi Chamber, took place as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is visiting Korea on a trip expected to center on enhancing business ties between the two countries. He arrived here late Wednesday.
Participants at the gathering noted that Riyadh's Vision 2030 reform drive, being pushed for by Prince Mohammed, offers a chance for the two countries to boost investment, especially as both sides have shown keen interest in Saudi's Neom City and Red Sea projects.
The Neom City project seeks to build a new sustainable city incorporating smart technologies and a major tourist site in the northwestern province of Tabuk. The Red Sea project aims to create a luxury tourism destination along the west coast of Saudi Arabia.
The Vision 2030 calls for reducing Saudi's dependence on oil and securing other growth engines. Korea is one of the five key partner countries picked by Riyadh for the initiative.
The economic cooperation between Korea and Saudi Arabia should seek to diversify cooperation into climate change, digital and bio technologies, as well as the traditional areas of large infrastructure, construction and energy, Kang Moon-soo, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, said during his presentation at the forum.
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| Korean Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho, left, who doubles as the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, poses for a photo with Saudi Economy and Planning Minister Faisal al-Ibrahim during their talks in Seoul, Nov. 16. Yonhap |
"As Korea and Saudi have declared carbon neutrality and been bolstering the push for renewable energy like hydrogen, we need to bring the mutual cooperation closer for energy diversification," Kang said.
"The need for a diverse cooperation also applies to new areas like entertainment, aerospace technology, bio and tourism, as Saudi has been active with its investment in those industries," he said.
Some 40 participants attended the event, including Kim Dong-wook, executive vice president at Hyundai Motor, and Fahad Wallan, chairman of Wallan Group, as chief representatives of the economic cooperation committee.
Later in the day, the two nations held an investment forum and signed the MOUs meant to boost cooperation and investment in a wide range of sectors, according to Seoul's industry ministry.
Of them, Saudi Arabia's Aramco-owned major oil refiner S-Oil signed three MOUs with a Korean construction firm for engineering, procurement and construction as part of its push for the second phase of the Shaheen project.
The 8 trillion-won (5.98 billion) project calls for building facilities at its plant in the southeastern city of Ulsan in a move to expand its petrochemical business.
It is the largest-ever foreign investment for Korea and is expected to advance the bilateral cooperation in the refining and petrochemical industry, according to officials.
Other agreements include the Saudi investment ministry's MOU with Hyundai-Rotem on the Neom railway project and an agreement with Lotte Fine Chemical on chemical projects, as well as pacts between Samsung CT and the Saudi Public Investment Fund on a modular business and the development of green hydrogen, according to the ministry.
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