Riyadh, September 8: In a surprise move, Saudi Arabia has relieved Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih from his post and replaced him with Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, according to a royal decree.

Al-Falih, who chaired state oil giant Saudi Aramco until last week and had been Energy Minister since 2016, also lost his Industry and Mining Resources portfolios last week, Efe news quoted the decree as saying on Saturday.

The ministerial change comes as Riyadh prepares Aramco for an initial public offering (IPO).

In addition, the Saudi government appointed Osama al-Zamil as Deputy Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources for Industry Affairs, replacing Abdulaziz Al-Abdulkarim, according to the official Saudi Press Agency.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 08, 2019 09:41 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).