It is reported that the Public Investment Fund is seeking investment opportunities in various sectors such as aviation, oil and gas, and entertainment. Earlier this month, the fund acquired an 8.2 percent stake in Carnival Corporation which is affected by the coronavirus. With that, the company’s shares rose nearly 30 percent higher. Carnival Corporation is an international cruise line headquartered in Florida.

Public Investment Fund Managing Director Yassir Al Rumayyan, said at an online investment forum, “There will be economies up and running, we will see a lot of potential.” The fund manages assets worth more than $300 billion. Also, it has stakes in Uber and Lucid Motors, media reports said.

Public Investment Fund has acquired stakes worth $1 billion in four European oil companies. Currently, the market is depressed on the back of the pandemic and low oil prices. These major companies include Equinor, Royal Dutch Shell, Total and Enir, media reports said.

A source told the media, “The Saudis have been buying every day almost for the past few weeks, specially since the share prices of many of these companies were in correction territory and dividend yields were very high. They’ve been buying on the basis that everything is much cheaper and that they are bullish on the long-term outlook for oil prices.”

That said, the Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund has allocated $45 billion to SoftBank’s Vision Fund which is worth $100 billion.

The post Saudi’s Public Investment Fund foresees opportunities post-pandemic appeared first on International Finance.

Premier Oil, a UK-based independent oil company, has acquired the stakes in the Andaman I and south Andaman blocks.
Mubadala Petroleum, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, will retain the remaining 80 participating interest in the gas fields in Indonesia.

With regard to the stake sale, Dr. Bakheet Al Katheeri, chief executive at Mubadala Petroleum told the media, “The completion of this farmout is another important step for Mubadala Petroleum and for the exploration of the Andaman blocks offshore Aceh, and supports Mubadala Petroleum’s growth strategy in Indonesia.”

The government of Indonesia has also given its approval for the deal.

Premier Oil, on the other hand, owns a 70 percent participating interest in the Andaman II block. The remaining 30 percent is owned by Mubadala Petroleum.

Mubadala Petroleum has been operating in Indonesia since 2004.

Earlier this month, Mubadala Petroleum, along with Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron, was awarded exploration rights in the Red Sea by the Egyptian government.

While Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell were awarded a block each, Mubadala Petroleum will share a block with Shell.
In the month of November 2019, Mubadala Petroleum started exploration in the Manora oil field in the Gulf of Thailand, along with Tap Oil, an Australia-based independent oil company.

While Mubadala Petroleum holds a 70 percent participating interest in the oil field, Tap Oil holds the other 30 percent.

Similarly, the UAE-based oil company also signed a production sharing contract with Thailand’s PTTEP Energy Development Company. Both the companies will work together to develop the offshore Block G1/61 that contains the Erawan field.

The post Mubadala Petroleum sells stakes in Indonesian gas fields appeared first on International Finance.

While speaking to the media at the World Economic Forum, Petronas’ chief executive officer Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said that renewable energy such as wind and solar have an important role to play in the future.

However, he also pointed out that oil and gas will continue to dominate and still be the major source of energy.

He said,” Gas demand in Asia and the Far East is expected to rise by 3.5 percent to 4 percent each year over the next five years.”

He added, “Policymakers and energy players are expected to navigate the complexity of transitioning to a lower-carbon energy system that fosters inclusive economic growth and provides affordable and secure energy supply.”

Petronas is also committed to the Ministry of Energy Science Technology Environment and Climate’s initiatives to reduce carbon emission intensity by 45 percent per gross domestic product per capita by 2030, while achieving a low-carbon economy status by 2050.

By committing to renewable energy, Petronas joins a list of other oil giants such as Royal Dutch Shell and Total which are investing in cleaner sources of energy.

Last year, Petronas acquired a 100 percent stake in M+, a Singapore-based company that offers renewable energy solutions such as solar panels. Petronas acquired a 100 percent interest from I Squared Capital, which holds a 90 percent stake in M+.

The deal marked Petronas’ entry into the renewable energy space.

According to Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, Petronas is focused on developing an energy mix that effectively balances the energy trilemma of security, affordability, and sustainability of energy supply.

The post Petronas to commit 5% of expenditure for renewable energy appeared first on International Finance.