Saudi Arabia’s state-backed oil giant Aramco paid the Saudi government 30% less in taxes in 2020, the company reported Monday, as the region’s largest economy grapples with the pressures of the coronavirus pandemic and low oil prices.
Saudi Arabian Oil Co, the kingdom’s largest taxpayer, transferred $110 billion to the government in 2020, down from nearly $159 billion the year before. The kingdom’s 2021 budget plans to spend $263 billion, showing the significance of Aramco’s payments to state coffers.
The state-controlled company’s public figures offer key insight into the financial health of the kingdom, which relies on the energy sector for 80% of its exports and two-thirds of its financial revenues. That’s despite Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ambitious efforts to diversify the economy away from oil.
