Saudi Aramco commits $25 mln to MIT for research and development

Aramco Services Company (ASC), the North American arm of Saudi Aramco, has signed a five-year, $25 million agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for research and development (R&D) in order to address global energy and climate challenges.

The agreement was inked at The Innovation to Impact Forum in Boston along with five other pacts, in the presence of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman who is on a visit to the United States, the oil major said on Saturday.

The deal with MIT includes R&D in the fields of sustainable and renewable energy; carbon capture, utilization, and storage; environmental sciences; energy storage; water conservation and reuse; and technologies including computational modeling, artificial intelligence, robotics and nanotechnologies.

The new collaboration also builds on ASC’s existing engagement with MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) and its low-carbon energy centers.

Aramco became a founding member of MITEI in 2012.