RIYADH, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Aramco announced Thursday the signing of an 11 billion U.S. dollar lease-and-leaseback agreement for its Jafurah gas processing assets with a consortium of international investors, marking a major inflow of foreign direct investment into the Kingdom's energy sector.
The deal is led by funds managed by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of New York-based global investment management corporation BlackRock, the company revealed in a statement.
Jafurah is the largest non-associated gas development in Saudi Arabia. It is a key component in Aramco's plans to increase gas production capacity by 60 percent between 2021 and 2030, to meet rising demand.
As part of the transaction, a newly-formed subsidiary, Jafurah Midstream Gas Company (JMGC), will lease development and usage rights for the Jafurah Field Gas Plant and the Riyas NGL Fractionation Facility, and lease them back to Aramco for 20 years.
JMGC will receive a tariff payable by Aramco in exchange for granting Aramco the exclusive right to receive, process, and treat raw gas from Jafurah.
Aramco will hold a 51 percent majority stake in JMGC, with the remaining 49 percent held by investors led by GIP.
The transaction, which will not impose any restrictions on Aramco's production volumes, is expected to close as soon as practicable, subject to customary closing conditions.
