Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest petroleum exporter, is staring into a future in which its most valuable asset — the oil under its sands — is shrinking in value.
That is not only because the price of oil has been plummeting over the last year, but also because the climate-conscious world has a diminishing appetite for fossil fuels.
So, in a potential strategic shift made public this week, Saudi Arabia is considering a public offering of shares in its giant state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco, or possibly some of its subsidiaries.
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In the view of Ms. Marcel and other Saudi watchers, the country’s new leadership is trying to use the oil price collapse over the last two years to remake the economy and shift away from an oil-funded, government-dominated system to one where private business has a larger role. The leaders were appointed by King Salman, who came to power early last year after the death of his brother King Abdullah.
