Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global investment company BlackRock in order to explore infrastructure investments in the Kingdom and the Middle East.
The MoU aims to anchor BlackRock’s Middle East Infrastructure strategy and establish a framework to jointly explore infrastructure projects in the Middle East, with a majority of the investment activity focused on Saudi Arabia.
According to the statement, “In support of this initiative, BlackRock will look to build a dedicated infrastructure investment team in Riyadh to cover the Middle East region.”
The target projects are across a range of sectors including energy, power, utilities, water, environment, transportation, telecommunications, and social infrastructure, leveraging positive Saudi and regional market dynamics to deliver sustainable long-term returns.
PIF and BlackRock plan to work together to attract regional and international investors to participate in investment projects, boost foreign direct investment (FDI) into Saudi Arabia, and add value to the Saudi Arabian economy as well as the wider market while facilitating knowledge and skills transfer.
The MoU signing is aligned with PIF’s mandate to explore new investment opportunities in the MENA region while enabling and supporting Saudi private sector participation.
“It further cements PIF’s partnership with BlackRock and allows both parties to explore opportunities in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East, in line with PIF’s strategy to expand its local and regional investment portfolio,” as per the statement.
Recently, PIF sold a 10 percent stake in stock exchange operator and owner Saudi Tadawul Group through a secondary share offering, raising $612 million (2.3 billion riyals).
