Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Khaled al-Falih has been relieved of his post and Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman, the king's son, has been appointed as his successor, the first time a member of the ruling family has taken over.
A royal decree also appointed Osama bin Abdul Aziz Al Zamil as Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, replacing Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah bin Ali Al Abdul Karim, and Prince Sultan bin Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz was appointed ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman is a long-time member of the Saudi delegation to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and has decades of experience in the oil sector.
Analysts say Prince Abdul Aziz is not expected to change Saudi Arabia's oil policy as he helped negotiate the current deal between OPEC and non-OPEC countries to reduce global oil supply to support prices and balance the market.
Prince Abdul Aziz was appointed Minister of State for Energy in 2017 and worked closely with former Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi as his deputy for years.
Some insiders say the prince's long experience overcame what has always been seen as the impossibility of appointing a member of the Saudi royal family to the post of energy minister.
Power balance
Saudi sources and diplomats point out that the prevailing thinking was that the Saudi ruling family considered the post of oil minister so important that attributing it to one of the princes could disturb the delicate balance of power in the ruling family and risk making oil policy hostage to political maneuvers.
The oil portfolio has held five ministers since 1960, none of whom were members of the ruling family.
Last month, Saudi Arabia set up a ministry of industry and mineral resources, separating it from the huge energy ministry.
Prior to the dismissal, former minister Khalid al-Falih oversaw more than half of the Saudi economy through his massive ministry, set up in 2016 to help coordinate new reforms.
Al-Falih was also relieved last week of the presidency of Saudi Aramco and Yasser Al-Rumayyan, head of the Public Investment Fund, the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund, was appointed as the new president.