Reliance Reboots Aramco Deal, To Re-Evaluate Saudi Firm Picking Stake In O2C Business

The two firms have agreed to re-evaluate the proposed investment in light of the Indian firm's new energy forays.

File Photo: PTI

New Delhi: After missing two self-imposed deadlines, billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd on Friday announced recalibration of its proposed USD 15 billion deal to sell 20 per cent stake in its oil refinery and petrochemical business to Saudi Aramco.

The two firms have agreed to re-evaluate the proposed investment in light of the Indian firm's new energy forays, it said.

The stake sale talks, which were first officially revealed in August 2019, are being reset in light of Reliance making forays into new energy business in recent months by investing USD 10 billion in alternative energy over three years.

To pivot to green energy, it has already bought a German maker of photovoltaic solar wafers and signed a deal with a Danish company to manufacture hydrogen electrolysers in India.

"Due to the evolving nature of Reliance's business portfolio, Reliance and Saudi Aramco have mutually determined that it would be beneficial for both parties to re-evaluate the proposed investment in O2C business in light of the changed context," the Indian firm said in a statement.

Also, the application with NCLT for segregating the oil-to-chemical (O2C) business is being withdrawn, Reliance said.

It was further stated that RIL shall continue to be "Saudi Aramco's preferred partner for investments in the private sector in India and will collaborate with Saudi Aramco & SABIC for investments in Saudi Arabia".