The Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources is responsible for general strategy in the oil and gas sectors and for monitoring the state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco. The oil, gas and refining industries in Saudi Arabia are controlled by law by Saudi Aramco, which has a near monopoly in these areas. It is the world's biggest oil producer, the Middle East's biggest company and is generally considered to be the most important energy company in the world. However, in 2003, the law was changed to allow foreign companies to look for Saudi Arabia's vast reserves of natural gas, believed to represent 4% of the world's reserves. This was the first time since the 1970s that foreign companies have been permitted to search for oil or gas.