Oil and gas in the Middle East: What’s on the horizon?

Posted on 13/05/2019

Despite the nations of OPEC agreeing to curb production in recent months in light of the booming oil and gas industries in the US and Russia, we’re still expecting to see a number of high-profile projects start up across the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia. State-oil giant Saudi Aramco has more than 70 major projects under development, with investment amounting to $414 billion.

 

So, what’s on the horizon for the rest of 2019? We’ve rounded up some of the top projects to keep an eye on…

 

 Petro Rabigh Integrated Refinery and Petrochemical Complex – Phase II

Saudi Arabia’s continuing efforts to diversify into the downstream oil and gas industry are evident in the significant investments the country is making in projects such as Phase II of the Petro Rabigh Integrated Refinery and Petrochemical Complex. Phase II will see expansion of the existing ethane cracker and aromatics complex, plus the construction of at least 15 downstream chemical production plants.

 

The expansion is set to introduce a wide range of petrochemical derivatives, many of which are new to the Kingdom and the region as a whole – resulting in a huge impact to Saudi’s diversification efforts as it seeks to meet rising demand for Petrochemical products in China and the far East.

 

Al Fadhili Gas Plant

With a processing capacity of 2.5 Bcf/d of sour gas, the Al Fadhili Gas Plant from Saudi Aramco will be a greenfield development situated around 30km west of the city Jubail, in Saudi’s eastern province.

 

The Fadhili project will include a pipeline package, and construction of the plant is to be carried out in three EPC packages:

 

1. Package 1 – Main Processing Facilities
2. Package 2 – Sulphur Recovery Unit (SRU)
3. Package 3 – Offsites and Utilities

 

Jizan – Grassroots Export Refinery

Another major downstream project for Saudi Arabia, the Jizan project will see the construction of a refinery with an associated marine terminal in the country’s southwest.

 

Construction is expected to take 4 years, and will have a capacity of 400,000 barrels of oil a day. The refinery will feature multiple vacuum distillation units and crude distillation units, off sites and utilities, flare towers, storage tanks, and various pipelines.

 

Berri Oil Field Increment Program (BIP)

In September 2018, Saudi Aramco awarded a contract to construct two drilling islands under Berri Oil Field.

 

The BIP programme will enable Saudi Aramco to expand production of Arabian light crude oil from the Berri Oil Field by over 250,000 barrels per day.

 

While this list is by no means definitive, it does show that there’s a lot on the horizon to look out for and be excited by in the Middle East. Major projects require major talent, so if you’re looking for candidates to fulfil your project needs, please do get in touch!