Industry Minister Invites Global Companies to Invest in Saudi Downstream Chemical Sector

Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef led a business roundtable meeting with leading global industrial companies in Düsseldorf, Germany, highlighting strategic investment opportunities in Saudi Arabia's downstream chemicals and advanced manufacturing sectors. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the "K Show 2025," the world's leading trade fair for the plastics and rubber industry.

 Alkhorayef emphasized the transformative economic and industrial progress underway in the Kingdom as part of Vision 2030. He outlined the vital role of the industrial sector as a cornerstone of economic diversification and underscored the objectives of the National Industrial Strategy in driving these national ambitions.

 Saudi Arabia's petrochemical sector has grown significantly, with a focus on transforming petrochemical products into high-value downstream industries to maximize the sector's economic impact. To achieve this, Saudi Arabia provides numerous incentives and enablers to attract local and international investments.

 The minister outlined Saudi Arabia's competitive advantages as a global destination for industrial investment. These include a highly skilled workforce, a strategic geographic location linking three continents and providing access to major regional and global markets, abundant natural resources, competitive energy prices, advanced infrastructure, and modern industrial cities.

 He also highlighted the Kingdom's industrial transformation and the pivotal role of the Advanced Manufacturing and Production Center in enabling this shift. The center acts as an umbrella for the ministry's initiatives to adopt automation and advanced industrial technologies. These initiatives include the "Future Factories" program, which aims to accelerate the adoption of Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies in 4,000 factories, and the "Industrial Lighthouses" program, which focuses on enabling leading national factories to incorporate advanced technologies, improve production efficiency, and qualify for global recognition within the World Economic Forum's Global Lighthouse Network. Additionally, the center supports the development of a network of capability centers and the Operational Excellence Program.

 The roundtable, organized by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources in collaboration with Messe Düsseldorf, was attended by senior officials, including Vice Minister for Industrial Affairs Khalil bin Salamah, CEO of the National Industrial Development Center Saleh Al-Solami, and Messe Düsseldorf CEO Wolfram Diener.

 This event was part of Alkhorayef's official visit to Germany, where he is leading a delegation from the Kingdom's industrial and mining ecosystem at the "K Show 2025." The visit reflects Saudi Arabia's commitment to strengthening global industrial partnerships, exchanging expertise, transferring knowledge and technology, and attracting high-quality investments to the Kingdom.