Saudi Aramco inks second deal to build homes for employees

“Personally I’m enthusiastic about this step”.

Muhammed bin Salam, the kingdom’s deputy crown prince, told The Economist the decision by the kingdom will happen in the next few months. “I believe it is in the interest of the Saudi market, and it is in the interest of Aramco, and it is for the interest of more transparency, and to counter corruption, if any, that may be circling around Aramco”, said the prince.

The world biggest crude exporter is considering selling a stake in its state-owned company, which controls more than a tenth of the global oil market. But the steep drop in oil from a peak of more than $100 a barrel to below $34 for West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark crude, is forcing changes. Salman said he wants to reduce the country’s dependence on oil, comparing his plans to Margaret Thatcher’s shakeup of the United Kingdom economy in the 1980s.

This potential market debut for the company comes amid a continued slide in the price of crude oil.

Saudi Arabia has been widely blamed for the plummeting oil prices as Riyadh has adamantly refused to cut its crude output in a bid to drive other oil market players, including U.S. shale producers, out of the market.

Despite oil’s crash, the Saudi economy is far from a crisis, Salman said, according to a transcript of the interview published on The Economist’s website.

Brent crude slumped below US$35 a barrel before USA government data forecast to show fuel supplies rose in the world’s biggest consuming nation.

One of the biggest companies in the world, Aramco is also the world’s biggest oil producer and is worth “trillions of dollars”, according to Saudi officials.

Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange allowed foreign investors to trade shares for the first time a year ago.