Saudi Arabia signed a $200 million natural gas biotechnology agreement

Saudi Arabia's General Investment Authority (Sagia) has reportedly signed an agreement to build a $200 million infrastructure in the country that will convert natural gas into high-protein livestock feed using a patented fermentation process. The facility will use natural gas as raw material to produce "high-quality protein supplements for feeding fish, poultry and livestock, thus realizing the decoupling of protein production from agriculture and fisheries".

According to the Saudi official news agency (SPA), the project's partners are Unibio, a Danish biotechnology company, and Edhafat, its local subsidiary. In addition to promoting food security, the project is also seen as a valuable opportunity for technology and knowledge transfer in Saudi Arabia's chemical sector, as the facility will use natural gas as raw material and natural gas is a rich resource in Saudi Arabia.

SAGIA indicated that protein could be produced without increasing pressure on agricultural systems or fish stocks through the use of natural gas, cost-effective electricity and chemicals. The chemical industry is an important component of the country's economic diversification programme.