mobanmarketDubai: Saudi Arabia has named Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman, a son of the king, as energy minister, replacing Khalid Al Faleh, state news agency SPA reported on Sunday, citing a royal decree.
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The appointment represents the first time a member of the ruling Al Saud family has held the energy minister post in the world’s top oil exporter.
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The new energy minister is an older half-brother to the crown prince, Mohammad Bin Salman, and an experienced oil industry figure in Saudi Arabia. He has been minister of state for energy affairs since 2017
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Prince Abdulaziz is a longstanding member of the No. 1 crude exporter’s delegation to the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), with decades of experience in the oil sector.
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Negotiator
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As a veteran of OPEC policy-making, Prince Abdulaziz is not expected to change the kingdom’s oil policy, since he helped negotiate the current agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC countries to cut global crude supply to support prices and balance the market, analysts say.
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It is the first time a member of the ruling Al Saud family will hold the energy minister post.
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In 2017, he was named Minister of State for Energy Affairs, and has worked closely with previous oil minister Ali Al Nuaimi as his deputy for years.
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Lengthy experience
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Some industry insiders say the prince’s lengthy experience has overcome what has always been seen as the impossibility of appointing a royal to the post of energy minister in Saudi Arabia.
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Saudi Arabia has had five oil ministers since 1960, and none of them has been a royal.
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Last month, Saudi Arabia created a ministry for industry and mineral resources, separating it from the kingdom’s colossal energy ministry.
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