Saudi Arabia, shaken by dropping oil prices, is looking to the United States for its future energy needs, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co., commonly called Aramco, has engaged in preliminary talks about buying a state in Tellurian, a Houston-based developer of liquefied-natural-gas, and also has looked into investment in two large American oil-and-gas basins: the Permian and Eagle Ford, the Journal said.

Neither Aramco nor Tellurian would verify the talks.

Such a move would be a major shift. Saudi Arabia has long led the world in crude oil exports, but American production via hydraulic fracturing, known as "fracking," in recent years has drastically cut prices.

Saudi oil shipments hit a 30-year low in September.

"From a historical standpoint, it's striking," Jason Bordoff, head of Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy, told the Journal. It is "a reminder of how dramatic the impact of the shale revolution has been," he added.

The move also comes as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed has announced Aramco will offer shares of public stock next year as part of his overall reforms that include allowing women to drive, ending a ban on movie theaters, and cracking down on corruption in the kingdom.