Aramco earmarks additional $4B for Aramco Ventures

Saudi Aramco allocated an additional $4 billion to its global venture capital arm, Aramco Ventures.

This will more than double the capital allotted to Aramco Ventures, increasing its total investment allocation from $3 billion to $7 billion, the company said in an emailed statement to Argaam.

It will take Aramco’s overall venture capital allocation to $7.5 billion, which also includes the $500 million venture capital fund Wa’ed Ventures that focuses on the start-up ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.

The decision reflects the growing significance of Aramco’s venture capital program in enabling the development of disruptive new technologies, creating diversification opportunities for Aramco, and paving the way for collaborations with innovative start-ups. In doing so, it aims to help advance the Company’s long-term strategy, which includes a focus on new energies, chemicals and transition materials, diversified industrial businesses, and digital technologies.

The additional $4 billion in funding will be injected over the next four years, as Aramco intends to provide the financial backing required to take game-changing solutions to the next level, said Ahmad Al Khowaiter, Aramco Executive Vice President of Technology & Innovation, said.

Prior to the new capital allocation, Aramco Ventures managed three funds. These are a Digital/Industrial Fund, which stood at $500 million, investing in technologies of strategic importance to Aramco; the Prosperity7 Fund with $1 billion, investing in disruptive technology ventures beyond the energy sector; and the Sustainability Fund, which stood at $1.5 billion and invests in start-ups with the potential to support Aramco’s ambition to achieve net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions across its wholly-owned and operated assets by 2050.