A high-level Saudi delegation arrived here on Sunday to hold bilateral trade talks between the two countries. Sources said that the delegation is being led by Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan. The delegation will hold meetings with different high-level officials during its stay. It will also hold talks on promotion of bilateral ties and economic and trade cooperation.
The Saudi team is likely to ink Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Pakistani officials during their stay. Finance Minister Asad Umar will be leading the team that will hold talks with the visitors. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry had said in one of his recent press conferences that the Saudi delegation will comprise petroleum and energy ministers, besides other high-ranking government officials for the talks.
The prospect of setting up oil refineries in Gwadar is likely to be discussed by the delegation. According to sources, the Saudi officials are expected to sign an agreement to sell petroleum products to Pakistan on deferred payments. During its six-day visit to Pakistan, Saudi officials will also sign MoU to make investments in the Balochistan Reko Diq gold and copper mines, the sources said.
Sources further informed that agreements to privatise two Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) power plants and sale of phosphate-containing fertilisers to Pakistan are also expected to be signed.
Earlier, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed three MoUs for grant projects in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the health and education sectors. Secretary Economic Affairs Division Syed Ghazanfar Abbas Jilani and the chief executive officer Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) signed the MoUs on behalf of their respective governments.