Saudi food company Savola Group plans to invest 18 billion riyals ($4.8 billion) expanding in North Africa and Central Asia, and developing new businesses, its chief executive said on Sunday.

The Jeddah-based company, which owns the Azizia Panda chain of supermarkets in the kingdom, can raise half the funds itself and the remaining half from potential partners, Sami Baroum told Reuters in an interview in Jeddah.

About 60 percent of the investment will go on expanding existing activities such as edible oils, sugar refining and supermarket retailing in countries such as Pakistan and Turkey, Baroum said.

Savola, the Gulf's largest food company by market value, will open an edible oil plant in Algeria next year, he said.

"Our balance sheet can easily allow us to raise 4 to 5 billion riyals in loans," Baroum said. "For the expansion plan, we can leverage 9 billion riyals."

The company is seeking a rating ahead of selling Islamic bonds, or sukuk, Baroum said, declining to give details. Company debt at the end of last year was 2.4 billion riyals, he said.

Savola is also seeking to expand its supermarket business.

"We have always been seeking partners and we are still seeking partners, whether through merger or by acquiring them or through a joint venture with an international partner to create economies of scale quicker, and use Saudi Arabia as a springboard for expansion in the region," Baroum said.

The remaining 40 percent of the planned investments will go into new businesses such as petrochemicals and oil refining, Baroum said.

Savola has a 13 percent stake in Joussous, a $1 billion petrochemical company it is helping set up with planned investments of $5 billion, Baroum said.

"We are focusing on high-added-value petrochemical products," he said, declining to give further details.

In an earlier statement, the company said: "The group will pursue equity stakes in companies in new business sectors across the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, as well as seek growth opportunities for existing operations."

Savola in April posted its smallest quarterly profit in a year.

Net income in the three months to March 31 rose 1.3 percent to 137.5 million riyals ($36.7 million), or 0.37 riyals per share, compared with 135.8 million riyals in the year-earlier period.

Shares of Savola fell 0.61 percent on Sunday. They are down 12.3 percent this year to Saturday's close.