India, Saudi Arabia hold inaugural meeting of High-Level Investment Working Group

New Delhi, July 29 (KNN) In a significant development for bilateral economic relations, India and Saudi Arabia convened the first virtual meeting of the newly established Senior-Level Task Force on Investment.

The meeting, held on Sunday, focused on analysing various investment opportunities in the public and private sectors in both countries.

The talks were co-chaired by PK Mishra, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, and Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Energy Minister. They covered a wide range of potential investment areas.

These included refining and petrochemical plants, renewable energy, power, telecommunications and innovation.

The Indian side reiterated its commitment to facilitating Saudi investments worth about $100 billion, in line with the promise made during the visit of the Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister to India.

To achieve this goal, both sides agreed to regular consultations between their technical teams.

To take discussions on the oil and gas sector forward, a delegation led by the Petroleum Secretary of India has planned a visit to Saudi Arabia.

Additionally, Saudi Arabia has been invited to open an office of its Public Wealth Fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), in India.

The high-level task force, comprising senior officials from both countries, was set up by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during the latter’s state visit to India in September 2023.

Following the meeting, the Saudi Energy Minister was invited to India for another round of talks, reflecting the ongoing commitment to strengthening economic ties between the two countries.

This inaugural meeting marks an important step towards strengthening economic cooperation and mutual investment between India and Saudi Arabia, which could have a transformative impact on their bilateral relations in the years to come.

(KNN Office)