(2)Fisheries and Aquaculture

66. Fisheries is a relatively small sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, However, fish production has been increasing in the last few years. Total fish and shrimp production increased from 65.2 thousand tons in 2001 to 95.5 thousand tons in 2009; approximately 22.3 thousand tons came from fish farms.

67. Saudi Arabia is developing the fisheries sector by exploring ways to increase fish catch and aquaculture production, and encourage more private investments in these sectors for job creation and the development of rural coastal areas.

68. The Government has continued to develop and protect the environmental aspect of the fisheries sector through the optimal management of coastal areas to enrich the fish stock.

69. The Ministry of Agriculture is exerting considerable effort to fully developing aquaculture in suitable coastal and interior areas in order to augment food security and self-sufficiency, produce high-value seafood products for export, and achieve development goals.

70. The Ministry has been actively involved in helping fish farmers and aquaculture investors especially with respect to research and development, technology transfer, manpower training, and marketing support.

(3)Hydrocarbon And Mining Sectors

71. Saudi Arabia's hydrocarbon sector has contributed to the economic development, growth and prosperity of Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom has applied diversification policies broadly throughout the hydrocarbon sector to develop downstream refining, processing and converting industries.

72. The contribution of the sector's activity to GDP (at current prices) amounted to 48.1% during 2009. The sector recorded a growth of 25% in 2010. In real prices, the sector grew by 2.1% in 2010. However, its contribution to the economy decreased to 23.1% of real GDP as measured by 1999 prices.

(I)Hydrocarbon Sector

(a)Oil

73. Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) is a state-owned company established by Royal Decree in 1988. Saudi Aramco's oil operations encompass the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, including territorial waters in the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea, totalling more than 1.5 million square kilometres.

74. Most production comes from fields in the coastal plains of the Eastern Province in an area extending 300 kilometres. According to estimates by OPEC, in 2009 Saudi Arabia held 264.59 billion barrels of crude oil in proven reserves (approximately 25% of proven OPEC member reserves). In 2010, Saudi Arabia's production reached 2.98 billion barrels of crude oil. In 2010, Saudi Arabia completed a multi-year, multi-project program and raised its maximum sustainable crude oil production capacity to 12.5 million barrels per day.