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NEWSMAKER-Saudi Aramco's Amin Nasser: homegrown engineer who reached the top

At an industry occasion in Riyadh 2 years ago, the Saudi energy minister stopped briefly at about 9 p.m. in front of some 1,000 individuals and told them it was bedtime for Amin Nasser, the president of huge stateowned oil producer Saudi Aramco.

He was not joking.

Over a career of four decades, Nasser has earned a. track record for a design of dedication that suggests he will be. ensuring he's ready for the obstacles of the day ahead, not. mingling into the early hours.

It was type of embarrassing you know with protocol and all. these things, however it goes to reveal his work ethic and all that he. tends to do to stick out, stated a market source, speaking on. condition of anonymity.

Nasser has actually been patiently preparing for years for the order. to sell more shares in Aramco, after handling the company's. initial public offering in a record $29.4 billion listing in. 2019. The landmark deal is a huge part of Crown Prince Mohammed. bin Salman's drive to diversify the economy away from oil. The. Saudi oil giant is one of the world's most important companies.

While managing the daily management tasks of a company with. over 73,000 employees, Nasser has also dealt with the concerns. that surround how to satisfy the world's energy requirements and become. significantly outspoken on the problem.

HOMEGROWN TECHNOCRAT

Under Nasser, Aramco has bought refineries and. petrochemical jobs in China and in other places, broadened its. retail and trading organizations, and honed its focus on gas,. making its very first venture into liquefied natural gas abroad last. year.

Before becoming CEO in 2015, the homegrown technocrat was an. unknown amount in the West. In contrast to other Aramco CEOs,. he is not a product of a significant U.S. university and rather. climbed the business's ranks after getting a Saudi education.

Nasser began his career as a petroleum engineer. Before. becoming CEO, he held positions including vice president of. upstream when he led the company's largest capital investment. programme in its incorporated oil and gas portfolio.

To guide the business smoothly, he needs to keep the support. of 2 of the most powerful figures in the kingdom: Energy. Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Yasir al-Rumayyan,. guv of Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF who is also chairman. of Aramco's board of directors.

Nasser has become extremely popular at Aramco by promoting a. decentralised culture and spending time with both leaders and. workers, experts state.

During the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, he makes a point. of visiting an Aramco field or plant every night and breaking. the quick with crews.

Pleasing the elite is also part of his task. That suggests. keeping the petrodollars flowing, including for the ambitious. financial diversification strategy of Crown Prince MbS, as he is. frequently known, that consists of a huge metropolitan and industrial. development job almost the size of Belgium to be constructed along. the Red Sea coast, NEOM.

Nasser's job is way bigger than that of the common oil. company CEO. His task is not just producing and marketing oil,. however likewise keeping the Saudi federal government provided with the profits. necessary to remain afloat, said Jim Krane, energy research. fellow at Rice University's Baker Institute and author of the. book Energy Kingdoms.

The security of the Saudi royal family depends to a large. extent on his success.

One of Nasser's most significant tests was available in 2019 when drones and. missiles struck Aramco's Abqaiq and Khurais oil plants and. halved Saudi Arabia's crude output.

The United States and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for the. attack. Tehran rejected any involvement.

Nasser was at the Aramco emergency situation system within seven. minutes, said the market source. He did not micro-manage and. gave managers in the field the flexibility to make choices during. a high-pressure moment.

Despite 50% of Aramco's operations being impacted by the. attack, within a matter of a few weeks, Aramco was able to. restore the bulk of its operations, stated Mazen Al-Sudairi,. just recently designated advisor to the basic secretariat of the. Saudi cabinet, stated in 2022. He was previously head of sell-side. research at Al Rajhi Capital.

This was possible due to the fact that he continued the strong threat. management policy of the business that leaves no scope for. leniency..

(source: Reuters)