JEDDAH, 22 February 2004 — Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Al-Naimi yesterday underscored the strong Saudi-Korean cooperation in the energy sector and said Seoul imports one-third of its oil requirements from the Kingdom.
Speaking to reporters after meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon in Riyadh, he said Saudi Arabia exports more than 700,000 barrels of oil to the East Asian country.
According to the Saudi Press Agency, Naimi’s talks with Ki-moon focused on the oil market and joint investment. The two ministers discussed “oil cooperation and joint investments as well as the situation in the oil market,” SPA said.
State-owned oil and gas giant Saudi Aramco owns 50 percent of a South Korean refinery, which has a production capacity of more than 500,000 bpd using Saudi oil, Naimi said.
South Korea mainly exports cars and industrial equipment to the Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia, which sells oil, gas and petrochemical products to Seoul.
Meanwhile, the South Korean minister met with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd and handed the king a message from President Roh Mu-hyon.
He also held talks with Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, and Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, on issues of mutual concern.
South Korea is one of the Kingdom’s leading trading partners.