RIYADH: Saudi Arabia pumped a large amount of its surplus oil production capacity when the market was battling a range of issues such as the pandemic, geopolitical tensions and a production drop thanks to US policies, according to Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih. “The spare capacity, of course, is designed to be spared from the average production. The Kingdom has responded to crisis situations; Covid, a decline in production because of policies of US, the decline in production in other countries due to sanctions, ” Al-Falih told Bloomberg. He added: “Our spare capacity has come to the market...a significant amount of it to save the market.” Al-Falih, however, noted that the remaining spare capacity in the Kingdom is less than its initial levels, as Saudi Arabia pumped more surplus oil into the market in the last two years. Al-Falih added that the Kingdom, under the leadership of the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has taken exceptional measures at the local level, indicating that it will abide by its commitments and raise its production capacity to 13 million barrels per day when needed. During the interview, Al-Falih also noted that the Public Investment Fund’s strategy is not just to expand its assets under management, but also to selectively invest in various sectors that have opportunities in Saudi Arabia. He also invited global companies to invest in the Kingdom. “Saudi Arabia is a great platform for companies from around the world to invest in. The Kingdom has reliability in terms of its regulations and pro-business policies,” added Al-Falih.