Mohammed Hussein Al Amoudi

Mohammed Hussein Ali Al Amoudi
Born	(1946-07-21) July 21, 1946 Dessie, Ethiopia
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, businessman
Years active	1980s–present
Known for	Billionaire businessman; largest foreign private investor in Ethiopia; owner of Corral Petroleum Holdings and MIDROC
Notable work	MIDROC construction projects, oil refineries in Sweden and Morocco, investments in agriculture, mining, hospitality, healthcare, manufacturing

Mohammed Hussein Ali Al Amoudi (; born 21 July 1946) is a billionaire entrepreneur of Hadrami descent, originally from Saudi Arabia.

He was born in Ethiopia to a Yemeni father from Hadhramaut and a mother hailing from Wollo Province. Later, he relocated to Saudi Arabia with his brother Mauricet and obtained Saudi citizenship.

As of 2025, his fortune was valued by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index at around US$10.3 billion, reflecting a decrease influenced by declines in global oil and gold markets. He holds the distinction of being Ethiopia’s wealthiest individual and ranks as the second wealthiest Saudi national. Al Amoudi accumulated his wealth initially through ventures in construction and real estate before expanding into ownership of oil refineries in Sweden and Morocco. He stands as the largest foreign private investor in Ethiopia and maintains significant investments in Sweden.

Business activities

Al Amoudi’s portfolio spans multiple sectors including construction, energy, agriculture, mining, hospitality, healthcare, and manufacturing. His enterprises operate mainly under two major groups, Corral Petroleum Holdings and MIDROC, both fully owned and managed by him, collectively employing over 70,000 staff members.

His construction group MIDROC (Mohammed International Development Research and Organization Companies) secured a landmark $30 billion contract in 1988 to develop an underground oil storage facility in Saudi Arabia. Additionally, MIDROC acquired Yanbu Steel in 2000.

Outside Ethiopia, Al Amoudi controls oil refining operations in Morocco and Sweden through Svenska Petroleum Exploration AB and is involved in energy exploration activities off the coast of West Africa. The Sheraton hotel he owns in Addis Ababa is recognized as one of Africa’s premier hotels.

He committed US$275 million via MIDROC along with partners from Saudi Arabia and South Korea to support the production of Saudi Arabia’s inaugural automobile, the KSU Gazal-1, a project led by King Saud University. In 2011, he unveiled plans to invest approximately US$1.07 billion into significant industrial ventures focused on phosphate derivatives and sulfur at Ras Al-Khair and Jubail Industrial City.

Ethiopian investments

Since the mid-1980s, Al Amoudi has invested extensively in Ethiopia, primarily through MIDROC Ethiopia, which was established in 1994. By 2011, MIDROC Ethiopia reported earnings of 1.4 billion birr (approximately US$70 million).

Natural resources

Al Amoudi possesses major interests in Ethiopia’s gold mining sector. MIDROC Gold Mine, a subsidiary under MIDROC Ethiopia, is the nation’s only gold exporter and has paid the highest royalties among mining companies at 100.1 million birr. Its Lega Dembi Mine produces around 4,500 kilograms of gold and silver annually.

He holds a 70% ownership stake in National Oil Ethiopia, competing against firms like YBF and TAF OIL within the country’s petroleum market. Moreover, he is spearheading the establishment of Ethiopia’s first industrial steel manufacturing plant, Tossa, located in the Amhara, aiming to meet domestic steel demand growth projected to rise from 1.2 million to 3.1 million tonnes per year between 2011 and 2014.

In February 2011, Al Amoudi acquired a controlling 69% share in Ethiopia’s sole tyre producer, Addis Tyre. He also holds significant stakes in cement manufacturing through Durba Midroc, founded in 2008. The large-scale cement facility near Chancho received financial support from the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group. In July 2011, Ethiopian Electric Power Company (EEPco) agreed to provide this Derba cement plant with an electricity supply of 50 MW.

Agriculture

Saudi Star Agricultural Development Plc, owned by Al Amoudi, intends to cultivate a significant portion of Ethiopian territory for the production of sugar, edible oils, and grains. In March 2011, the company revealed plans to invest $2.5 billion in rice cultivation projects within Ethiopia. Currently, approximately 10,000 hectares are leased for a duration of 60 years, with ambitions to secure an additional 290,000 hectares. Reports indicate that Saudi Star invested around $80 million in machinery sourced from Caterpillar Inc.

In August 2011, Ethiopian President Girma Wolde-Giorgis emphasized Saudi Star’s investment as a crucial factor in enhancing living standards across Africa and fostering stronger commercial relations with Saudi Arabia.

Al Amoudi also holds coffee plantation lands through Ethio Agri-CEFT in Ethiopia’s Sheka Zone. Out of the 2,295 hectares acquired, 1,010 hectares are planted with coffee and shade trees while the rest remains under natural vegetation. In 2011, he contributed 10 million birr (approximately US$500,000) towards the establishment of the Ethiopian National Coffee Museum located in the Kaffa Zone.

Following Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’s call for financial support for the Renaissance Dam in September 2011, Al Amoudi pledged 1.5 billion birr (nearly US$88 million) to aid Ethiopia’s expansion of hydroelectric power capacity.

Arrest and captivity

On 4 November 2017, under directives from Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman during Saudi Arabia’s extensive "corruption crackdown," Al Amoudi was detained by the royal anti-corruption committee. He remained in custody for 14 months before his release on 27 January 2019.

Philanthropy

Al Amoudi has made substantial contributions to healthcare and sports programs across Saudi Arabia, the United States, Europe, and Africa. His philanthropy includes funding a breast cancer research center at King Abdulaziz University and establishing a chair for enhanced oil recovery research at King Saud University in 2008. Moreover, he fully supported the King Abdullah Institute for Nanotechnology at King Saud University.

As a major benefactor of the William J. Clinton Foundation, Al Amoudi is reported to have donated between US$5 million and US$10 million. In the realm of sports, he sponsored the CECAFA Cup tournaments in 2005 and 2006, which subsequently became known as the Al Amoudi Senior Challenge Cup. He is also a patron of Ethiopian Premier League team Saint George S.C. and covered medical costs for footballer Mengistu Worku prior to his passing in 2010.

In 2011, Al Amoudi committed 100 million Ethiopian birr toward constructing a stadium and an access road in Mek'ele. The Sheikh Mohammed Hussein Ali Al-Amoudi Stadium officially opened in January 2017 after four and a half years of development at a cost exceeding $22 million.

Defamation actions

In December 2010, Al Amoudi initiated a libel lawsuit in the English High Court against Elias Kifle of the Washington D.C.–based Ethiopian Review, seeking compensation for defamatory content published. By July 2011, Kifle was ordered to pay damages amounting to £175,000.

The Ethiopian Review had also reiterated baseless accusations concerning Al Amoudi’s family and issues previously adjudicated in the 2005 Al Amoudi v. Brisard case. M. Brisard had made grave but subsequently withdrawn claims alleging terrorism financing after 9/11. The court found these assertions to be false and affirmed Al Amoudi’s unequivocal stance against terrorism.

Honors and recognition

Since 2006, Al Amoudi has consistently appeared on Forbes' list of the world's top 100 wealthiest individuals, securing the 82nd position in 2015. He has been awarded an honorary doctorate by Addis Ababa University and was honored with the Order of the Polar Star by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.

At the 19th Arab Economic Forum Summit in 2011, Al Amoudi was acknowledged for his economic contributions and philanthropic efforts, with special emphasis on his dedication to sustainable development.

Personal life

Al Amoudi was born in Dessie and grew up in Weldiya, Ethiopia, coming from a blended Hadhrami Yemeni and Ethiopian background. His father, Al-Hajj Sheikh Husayn Ali Al-Amoudi, was a local entrepreneur involved in spice and coffee trade and traced his lineage to the 13th-century Hadhrami Sufi scholar Sa'eed ibn Isa Al-Amoudi. Alongside his brother Mauricet, he relocated to Saudi Arabia and obtained Saudi citizenship.

He splits his residence among London, Surrey, and Saudi Arabia. Married to Sofia Saleh Al Amoudi, a Saudi national and shareholder in MIDROC Construction, they have eight children. In July 2024, after departing Ethiopia in 2017, he made a publicized return to the country, arriving in a Rolls-Royce Spectre.

External links

• Official website