Saudi Aramco, the world's biggest oil company, plans to expand more to downstream its projects including refineries and retailing, while regarding China as an important market for its global business landscape, Amin Nasser, president of the energy giant, told CGTN in an interview on the sidelines of the China Development Forum held in Beijing this weekend. 

The company would like to expand instead of restricting itself to providing crude oil, he said, noting that it will shift to petrochemicals, and also focus more on retailing and marketing.

Gas export ambitions

For the crude oil market, Saudi Aramco sees healthy growth in demand and believes the growth will continue but the energy giant also plans on expanding in other products, especially gas.

With the emerging trend of clean energy, Saudi Aramco, which owns a major gas business, also plans to export clean gas outside the kingdom, he said. 

Over the next decades, we are looking at exporting gas from the kingdom because we would have satisfied our share on the utility sector, which is around 70 percent, he said.

"The rest will be satisfied by solar, wind, nuclear in the future – the remaining 30 percent, which will allow us to export additional gas, he said, noting that the company will double the gas coming out from Saudi Arabia.

"We will be one of the top three players in gas. And approximately two million barrels of our production will be going into petrochemical, he said.

'Good progress' on SABIC takeover

In a previous interview with CGTN, Nasser said that the IPO for Saudi Aramco would only happen after the SABIC takeover.

"The progress is very good. We have a good discussion with the public investment fund that owned 70 percent of the shares," he said, noting that the deal of acquiring the Riyadh-based diversified chemicals leader is hopefully coming close.

The kingdom plans an initial public offering for Aramco in 2021, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said during a news conference in January.

Focus on Chinese market 

He also mentioned that the Chinese market is strategically important to the company.

"China has always been on our radar screen," he said, adding that there are many opportunities here, especially with the joint venture it signed in Panjin, northeast China's Liaoning Province.

The joint venture was signed by Saudi Aramco and NORINCO Group in February to develop a fully integrated refining and petrochemical complex.