Economics
Saudi Cost-Cutting Drive May Cancel $20 Billion of Projects
- Government to review thousands of contracts worth $69 billion
- Ministries could be merged or eliminated under plans
Saudi May Cancel $20B of Government Projects
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Saudi Arabia is weighing plans to cancel more than $20 billion of projects and slash ministry budgets by a quarter to repair finances squeezed by low oil prices, people familiar with the matter said, efforts that analysts expect to slow economic growth.
The government is reviewing thousands of projects valued at about 260 billion riyals ($69 billion) and may cancel a third of them, three people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are private. The measures would impact the budget for several years and may include transport, housing and healthcare projects, according to two of the people. The government plans to carry out the review within six months, they said.