Saudi Arabia: Saudi Aramco has agreed a $6 billion framework deal with the Export-Import Bank of Korea that could help South Korean companies win contracts in the Kingdom. 

The three-year deal was signed by Eximbank Chairman Yoon Hee-Sung and Saudi Aramco Chief Financial Officer Ziad Al-Murshed in Seoul. 

The agreement states that Eximbank can lend up to $6 billion to Saudi Aramco which can be used to pay South Korean companies involved in projects with the global energy firm. 

"The deal could give a big boost to South Korean companies in winning contracts in the Middle East," an Eximbank spokesperson said. 

The bank also stated that $1 billion out of the $6 billion is set for hydrogen and renewable energy deals. 

The agreement came amid expectations of profitable business opportunities in the Kingdom and the Middle East following the November visit to Seoul by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. 

South Korean companies are seeking to win construction contracts in Saudi Arabia’s $500 billion giga-project NEOM to develop eco-friendly cities. 

The deal also comes as part of South Korea’s efforts to create a “second Middle East boom”, as referred to by Yoon Hee-Sung, that comes as a follow-up of the first Middle East boom where many Koreans sent home cash by working at construction sites in the region in the 1970s. 

Aramco managed to build a strong relationship with South Korea by dedicating projects in the country and signing agreements with the Asian country’s companies. 

Last month, Aramco signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation with South Korea’s Hoban Group to work together in construction and manufacturing. 

Moreover, Aramco announced last year a $7 billion project in South Korea to produce petrochemicals from crude oil at S-Oil Corp. 

The project, named Shaheen, is the Saudi company's biggest investment in South Korea and will mark the first commercial use of Aramco and Lummus technology, a leading licensor of proprietary petrochemicals, to produce chemicals from crude.