Saudi Gazette report

ATHENS — Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, said that Saudi Arabia would provide Greece and the southwest Europe with much cheaper and efficient renewable energy.

“I promised you that when I come to Greece I wouldn’t come empty-handed. We have a lot of things that would be a game changer for both the countries and also for the region,” he said while identifying three major areas of bilateral cooperation — electricity, hydrogen and telecommunications.

The Crown Prince made the remarks during his official talks with Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis after his arrival in Athens on an official visit to Greece.

The two leaders held wide-ranging talks at the Maximos Mansion, the official seat and residence of the prime minister of Greece, here on Tuesday evening.

At the outset of his speech, the Crown Prince said: “I am glad to be in Greece and thankful for the warm welcome, which means a lot to me and Saudi Arabia. The relations between the two countries are historical.”

Referring to the vast scope for bilateral cooperation between the two countries, the Crown Prince said: “I believe we also have historical opportunities that we can finalize a lot of it today, linking the grid of electricity under which we will provide to Greece and southwest Europe with much cheaper renewable energy.

“And we are going to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in this regard today.”

Regarding the Saudi–Greek joint hydrogen ventures, the Crown Prince said: “Also, we are working on how to turn Greece as a hub for Europe to hydrogen that would be a game changer for both of us.

“Also we are working on linking telecommunications grid,” he said while noting that “all of these three big items that are going to change the positions of Saudi Arabia and Greece. We support Europe especially the south and west Europe with much cheaper and efficient energy.”

The Crown Prince also added: “We have the fourth big item, which we will not announce today but will announce later on as we are working on it. We have a lot of agenda in the fields of investment, trade, economy, security, in addition to the political,” he added.