Aramco plans to expand storage capacity beyond current levels: Al Rumayyan

Yasir Al Rumayyan, Governor of PIF, says Saudi Arabia focuses on long-term planning spanning years and decades, rather than short-term horizons

Saudi Aramco is considering owning global storage facilities larger than its current facilities, said Yasir Al Rumayyan, Governor of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Chairman of Aramco.

Speaking during a session at the FII PRIORITY Europe 2026, hosted by the Future Investment Initiative Institute, Al Rumayyan said that Aramco already owns extensive storage facilities worldwide, particularly in Asia, including Japan and South Korea.

He added that without such long-term thinking, the global situation would have been significantly worse than it is today.

Al Rumayyan also noted that the impact of conflicts in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has extended beyond the energy sector to include petrochemicals, fertilizers, and advanced industries.

He emphasized that Saudi Arabia — through its government and companies such as Saudi Aramco and the Public Investment Fund — focuses on long-term planning spanning years and decades, rather than short-term horizons.

He noted that Saudi Arabia's oil production stood at approximately 10 million barrels per day (bpd) before the crisis, while the East-West pipeline had a transport capacity of 5.5 million bpd, which was later expanded to 7.5 million bpd.

Al Rumayyan added that the PIF continues to pursue a diversified investment approach and maintains a structurally flexible portfolio. He emphasized that the fund is a long-term, patient investor and remains committed to all of its investments and strategies worldwide.

While acknowledging the challenges of investing in Europe, he stressed that the opportunities outweigh them. Between 2017 and 2025, the PIF invested around €98 billion in Europe and the United Kingdom. These investments contributed approximately €70 billion to European GDP and supported about 160,000 jobs across the continent.

He highlighted several joint ventures with European partners, including a partnership with Pirelli to develop automotive manufacturing activities in Saudi Arabia.

The Chairman added that the primary challenges facing investment in Europe are regulatory, noting that certain regulations have adversely affected investors such as PIF, Saudi Aramco and SABIC, impacting not only new investments but the continuation of existing ones.

At the same time, he welcomed the fact that European lawmakers and policymakers are reviewing these challenges and expressed hope that more effective solutions will emerge.

He further explained that since 2016, the fund's strategy has focused on taking Saudi Arabia to the world, adding that the new strategy’s objective is to bring the world to Saudi Arabia.

Al Rumayyan stressed that the PIF would continue to invest internationally, although the proportion of overseas investments in the overall portfolio may decline.

Nevertheless, the absolute value of those investments is expected to increase as the fund's assets under management continue to grow, he stated.