SAUDI ARABIA Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (photo credit: REUTERS)
Riyadh pulled the plug on awarding government contracts to German companies, in a possible response to Berlin’s pro-Iranian regime polices and its accusation that the kingdom’s foreign policy constitutes “political adventurism” in the Middle East.
Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman is “deeply offended” by the German government and froze new business with the Federal Republic, wrote Der Spiegel.
The newsweekly’s source was Detlef Daues, a German business owner active in Saudi Arabia, who said he was told by confidants in Riyadh about the prince’s displeasure with Berlin.
“Good morning from #Germany where tensions rising w/ Saudi Arabia over German position on Iran. Saudi govt is said to halt orders from German companies,” Holger Zschaepitz, a business editor with the Die Welt daily, tweeted on Saturday.
A senior German businessman in Saudi Arabia, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters on Friday that the healthcare sector in particular was feeling added scrutiny when applying for Saudi tenders.
“They have even been asking: Where are the products coming from? Are they made in Germany? Do you have other manufacturing sites? And as soon as this is made in Germany, they have been rejecting any German applications for tender,” the businessman said.
Saudi Arabia is a significant trade partner for Germany, accounting for exports worth €6.6 billion ($7.7b.) in 2017, according to the Federal Republic’s statistics office.
In November 2017, Riyadh withdrew its ambassador from Berlin, to punish then-foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel’s claim that Lebanon “could not tolerate the adventurism that has spread there” in connection with Saudi policy toward the Land of the Cedars.
Gabriel largely aligned German foreign policy with the Islamic Republic of Iran and Qatar. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said its government also handed Germany’s representative in Riyadh a note of protest over “shameful” comments Gabriel made after a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart.
Siemens last year won an order worth around $400 million to deliver five gas turbines for a combined heat and power plant being built in Saudi Arabia.
Daimler soon thereafter secured an order for 600 Mercedes- Benz Citaro buses from Saudi bus operator SAPTCO.Bayer, the Boehringer pharmaceutical company and Siemens declined to comment on the Der Spiegel report. Daimler said it could not confirm the report and that its business was ongoing.
A Saudi government media office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Bloomberg News reported in March that Saudi government agencies had been told not to renew some nonessential contracts with German firms.
At the time, it cited sources as saying that Deutsche Bank’s mandates in the kingdom were among those at risk, including a potential role in Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering, which could be the largest share sale ever.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related Topics
-Crude oil may derail economy – India’s macro-economic indicators are expected to take a hit this year, with crude oil expected to remain elevated at $75 a barrel – Crude oil economy Opec
-IMF urges Saudi Arabia to resist temptation to spend, as oil prices rise – Saudi Arabia has been advised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) not to increase spending, as oil prices reach $80 a barrel and are predicted to go higher – IMF Saudi Arabia crude oil prices
-Low oil price era is ‘dead’ as crisis-stricken Venezuela risks a supply shock, analyst says – The “lower for longer” oil price mantra is doomed, one oil analyst told CNBC Tuesday, amid heightened energy market fears of an imminent supply shock – Crude oil price crisis Venezuela supply shock
-Forget About Oil at $80. The Big Rally Is in Forward Prices – Crude Oil $80 Prices
-Oil prices to peak in mid-2019: BofAML – Brent crude oil prices are expected to trend gradually higher, hitting an average of $80 per barrel (/bbl) by mid-2019 before gradually trending lower to an average of $71/bbl by end-2019 – Crude Oil prices peak 2019 BofAML
-What is the perfect price for oil? – When it’s too high, consumers start freaking out and using less. When it’s too low, oil companies cut back operations and lay off thousands of workers – Perfect price crude oil
-The Regulations That Could Push Oil Up To $90 – International regulations on the fuels used in shipping could tighten the oil market and push prices up to $90 per barrel in the next two years – Regulations Push Crude Oil $90
-Morgan Stanley Sees Oil Climbing To $90 By 2020 – Forget Iran and OPEC. There’s another issue that will keep oil prices supported for the next two years, according to Morgan Stanley’s oil outlook – Morgan Stanley Crude Oil $90 2020
-Get ready for $100 a barrel oil and the conflict it represents – The geopolitical risk premium in oil has driven crude prices to nearly four-year highs and shows no signs of abating – $100 barrel crude oil
-Oil for $300. Is It Possible? – If major oil companies keep postponing the necessary investments, the next “huge supply shock” may bring the oil price up to $300 per barrel – Crude Oil $300 per barrel possible
-Oil eases as clock ticks down to Trump decision on Iran – Oil eased on Tuesday ahead of an announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump later in the day on whether the United States will reimpose sanctions on Iran, but the price held within sight of its highest in more than three years – Crude Oil Trump Iran
-Saudi Arabia Needs $88 Oil – Higher oil prices have provided a boost to the economies of oil-exporting nations such as Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia $88 Crude Oil
-BP says still sees oil at $50-$60/bbl in 2018 as shale output surges – BP expects benchmark oil prices to weaken in the second half of the year as U.S. shale production surges by up to 1.5 million barrels per day – BP crude oil $50 $60 barrel 2018 shale output
-Iran and the oil market – How Iran’s nuclear deal and a host of other factors are forging a new crude reality – Iran Crude Oil market
-Oil output cuts succeeded but future cloudy – There is a danger of Opec, non-Opec members exceeding their vision due to current rally in oil prices, energy expert says – Oil output cuts Opec nonOpec
-Who’s to blame for costly oil? Saudis, Russia and Trump himself – Rising oil prices are now the latest target in President Donald Trump’s cross-hairs. The nation’s tweeter-in-chief complained Friday about OPEC fueling – Blame costly oil Saudis Russia Trump
-Oil pulls back from gains; OPEC says glut nearly gone – Oil prices on Thursday hit highs not seen since 2014, built on the ongoing drawdowns in global supply and as Saudi Arabia looks to push prices higher, though U.S. crude gave back gains in the afternoon to finish lower – Crude Oil OPEC glut Saudi Arabia
-Escalating Middle East Tension Could Trigger Oil Prices To Hit $100 Per Barrel – Oil prices could soon soar to $100 per barrel amid growing fear about conflict in the Middle East, according to an oil analyst for CNBC – Oil Prices $100 Barrel
– IEA: OPEC Mission Near Completion as Oil Glut Vanishes – OPEC is on the verge of “mission accomplished” in its quest to clear the global oil glut that caused the worst industry downturn in a generation – IEA OPEC Crude Oil Glut
-Is Russia Cheating On The OPEC Deal? – After three months of steady output, Russia’s crude oil production increased in March to 10.97 million bpd, the highest level since April 2017, as the top two Russian companies boosted their production – Russia Cheating OPEC Deal
-Oil price crosses $70 amid Iran deal tensions – Oil prices rose as investors saw increasing possibility that the US could withdraw from the historic Iran nuclear deal – Crude Oil price dollars 70 Iran tensions
-Is $70 oil the new normal? – The global economy is poised to cope well even if oil prices will remain at around $70 per barrel throughout 2018, energy experts said – Dollars 70 barrel crude oil shale oil
-Will oil prices remain strong for the rest of the year? – The oil inventory trajectory anchors oil prices in the short term, and the cost of bringing on the marginal barrel of US tight oil supply serves as the medium-term anchor for prices – The oil inventory trajectory anchors oil prices in the short term, and the cost of bringing on the marginal barrel of US tight oil supply serves as the medium-term anchor for prices – Crude Oil prices
Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy Saudi Arabia Business Germany ProIran Policy
