Technip has been awarded two major lump sum turnkey contracts by the Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Company* (SATORP) for two packages which are part of a grassroots refinery to be built at the Jubail industrial area in Saudi Arabia.

This full-conversion refinery will have a processing capacity of 400,000 barrels per stream day of Arabian heavy crude oil. It will maximize production of diesel and jet fuels, and will also produce 700,000 tons per year (t/y) of paraxylene, 140,000 t/y of benzene and 200,000 t/y of polymer-grade propylene.

Technip’s scope for this project covers the engineering, procurement and construction of two contracts:

1. the hydro and catalytic cracking conversion process units
2. some of the utility units as well as the interconnecting network and process control system of the entire refinery.

Thierry Pilenko, Chairman and CEO, stated: “These major awards confirm Technip’s leadership in grassroots refineries as well as the technological know-how and project management capabilities of the Group.They illustrate Technip’s willingness to accompany its clients from the earliest stages of such projects.”

Source : AllBusiness.com  10 July 2009

Armed with their experience in Middle East refineries, Technip joins the speaker panel for the 2^nd Middle East & North Africa Refining conference on 12-13 Oct 2010 in Bahrain.

Mr Arturo Grimaldi, Senior Vice President Middle East Region from Technip will share his views on “EPC Markets – Contracting Options for Cost Management” while a related topic on “Advances in Digital Automation : Lowering Refinery Operating Costs” will be presented by Tim Olsen, Refining Industry Performance Consultant, Emerson Process Management.

For those who are keen on topics relating to engineering, procurement and contracting of refineries and technology advancements in refineries should attend this 2-Day conference. For more details on 2^nd Middle East & North Africa Refining, please click here.

HSBC Holdings PLC plans to bring on board by year-end an international oil company as strategic partner for a new refinery project by Libya's Zwara Oil Refining Co.

Source: Zawya

The project represents the first investment for Tamoil in Libya, and is among the largest projects in the country. It is also the first major government-sponsored project to seek commercial finance.

Dr. Ali Shamekh, Chairman of Tamoil Africa Holding Ltd and of (Zorco) said, "This project will be the most environmental friendly refinery ever built and will service the local, regional and international markets. It will also be the first project in Libya to be financed on a commercially structured project finance basis costing around $4 billion."

Source: CPIFinancial

As Libya seeks to expand refining projects in the country, those interested in finding out more about Refinery and Petrochemical Opportunities in Libya will be pleased to learn that CMT’s 2^nd Middle East & North Africa Refining meet on the 12 & 13 October in Manama is set to provide deeper insights in that area.

Presented by the project manager from Fluor Enterprise, Inc, the session will explore Libya’s Energy Cities Master Plan with focus on both Al Brega and Ras Lanuf refineries in Libya.

For more information on other topics and speakers contributing at this event, please click here.

There are strong signs of confidence in the Bahrain economy with the kingdom remaining a good place for foreign investment.

Standard Chartered Middle East and North Africa senior economist Philippe Dauba-Pantanacce said both Bahrain and the GCC were in a strong position at the moment for a number of factors .

US decision to double the size of the naval base would not only provide work for local businesses but would bring more consumers into the country.

This expansion means that Bahrain is seen as the centre for US strategy in the Middle East and that is important for the future.

The Middle East is between East and West, both geographically and economically and at the moment that is a good place to be.

Source : Downstream Today, 29 Jun 2010

Nestled in between the East and the West, Bahrain is the ideal venue to hold CMT’s 2^nd Middle East & North Africa Refining conference. Oil and Gas Affairs Minister and National Oil and Gas Authority chairman Dr Abdul-hussain Mirza said recently “Bahrain is looking at its refining capacity beyond 2012 to help give the country a competitive advantage and make it better positioned to capture future market opportunities.”  Join us in Bahrain on 12-13 Oct 2010 to learn his plans for optimising refinery capacities, crude oil import and production as well as future investments, among others.

B

ahrain plans to bring oil output to about 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) from its current 32,000 bpd, and is in talks with Saudi Arabia to expand a pipeline through which it currently imports about 230,000 bpd to some 350,000 bpd.

H.E. Dr. Abdul-Hussain Ali Mirza, Minister of Oil & Gas Affairs, and the Chair to Bahrain’s National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) commented that these were Bahrain’s long term plans.

Bahrain has seen a rapid rise in gas demand as its economy expanded during the recent oil boom, and in the long-term has to import gas to meet the increase in consumption.

Source: Arab News http://arabnews.com/economy/article59702.ece

Positive expansions within the Mid East and North Africa markets points to the 2^nd MENA Refining summit on 20-21 October as the ideal meet for all refinery professionals and senior management in search of insights into developments within the region and technological advancements towards operational and cost efficiency.

Click here to get details on topics and speakers confirmed.

Kuwait’s top oil policy body may decide by the end of September whether to build a fourth oil refinery to meet domestic fuel demand and for export after political opposition quashed the project last year.

Kuwait, holder of the world’s fourth-largest crude oil reserves, put on hold a plan for what would be the Persian Gulf country’s fourth refinery in March 2009 after the government canceled contracts following political opposition. Costs for the project had almost quadrupled by 2007 to 4 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($13.7 billion),

The refinery, to be located at Al Zour, will mainly process heavy crude oil the country is now developing, as well as Kuwait’s export blend. It’s planned to produce low-sulfur fuel oil for power plants, gasoline, diesel, naphtha and gasoil.

The refinery could start by 2015 as main design and engineering work for the project is done, Bakhit Al-Rashidi, deputy managing director of planning at Kuwait National Petroleum Co., said in April. Construction tenders could be issued next year once the project is approved, he said then.

The refining unit of state-run Kuwait Petroleum Corp. is also upgrading existing refineries to produce cleaner fuels, like low sulfur diesel, Al-Rashidi said. Engineering and design work for that project is finished and the upgrades may be done in 2015 or 2016, he said.

Source: Bloomberg Business Week

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-01/kuwait-may-decide-on-new-oil-refinery-by-september-update2-.html

Those seeking for further information on Middle East Refinery industry status need not look further than the

2^ndMENA Refining (Middle East North Africa) conference in Manama, Bahrain on 12-13 October 2010. This 2 day event aims to provide an objective evaluation on the drivers for new refining capacities and status, with special focus on Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Libya, and Morrocco. One of the event highlight is Mr Mohammad Alenezi, Team Leader of Operational Planning in Shuaiba Refinery who will share details and operational experiences in KNPC’s Supply Chain Implementation.

For additional information about the conference please feel free to contact Grace OH at grace@cmtsp.com.sg and tel: 65 63469147 or visit us at http://www.cmtevents.com/aboutevent.aspx?ev=101026

In a recent interview with Trade Arabia, H.E. Dr Abdul-Hussain Ali Mirza, Bahrain’s minister of Oil & Gas Affairs voiced his confidence that plans to boost the country’s refining capacity were moving ahead.

In 2007, HE Dr. Mirza announced Bahrain’s ambitious plans to consolidate its place at the centre of the Gulf region's oil refining industry, and unveiled a series of large investments to boost production capacity and the flow of crude into the country.

Since then BAPCO and NOGA have worked hard behind the scene. In November 2009, MEED reported that Bahrain was seeking to expand the capacity at its Sitra refinery by up to 200,000 bpd to meet an expected increase in oil output over the next 20 years.

So what’s next for Bahrain’s refining sector?

At the 2nd Middle East & North Africa Refining conference, key representatives of BAPCO will offer a glimpse into the future of Bahrain’s refining industry, when they deliver essential updates and progress reports on the situation.

The conference, meeting in Manama- Bahrain on 12-13 October 2010, isheldunder the August Patronage of H.E. Dr Abdul-Hussain Ali Mirza, Minister of Oil & Gas Affairs, Bahrain.

Those keen to explore opportunities in Bahrain’s refining sector, as well as opportunities in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Algeria, Egypt and Iran can register to attend  2nd MENA Refining for essential industry updates.

>>Register here<<

The 2^ndMENA Refining (Middle East North Africa) conference will congregate in Manama, Bahrain on 12-13 October 2010, under the patronage of Dr Abdul-Hussain Ali Mirza, Minister of Oil & Gas Affairs- Bahrain.

The agenda has been designed to keep you right up to date with the latest developments impacting the Middle East refining sector and explores the theme, “Maximizing yield and operational efficiency through synergistic process integration”. Executive speakers will address:

• Outlook of global energy demand and how soon the recovery for refiners?
• Drivers for new refining capacities and status (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Algeria, Egypt, Iran)
• Impact of evolving dynamics, rising refining capacities in Asia on margins & dynamics
• Operational excellence success and experience in Bahrain
• Synergy in refining-petrochemical integration and outlook on the feedstock markets
• Fuels restriction on sulfur and sulfur management solutions
• Processing heavier residues and maximizing light yield

The 2^ndMENA Refining (Middle East North Africa)conference will look ahead and evaluate the future growth of the regions refining sector, with insights from some of the industry’s most influential players. Attendees at the conference will include CEOs, MDs, Directors and Managers from refineries, downstream marketing, supply and trading units of International Oil Companies and NOCs, Crude Oil & Petroleum Products trading, Storage and Terminal companies, Additives and Catalyst companies, Technologies and Solutions providers, Equipment suppliers, EPC companies, Project Financing institutions and more.

If you wish to participate as delegates, media partners, exhibitors and / or sponsors at the 2^ndMENA Refining (Middle East North Africa)conference, submit your enquiries and proposals to Ms. Grace Oh at +65 6346 9147or email her at grace@cmtsp.com.sg.

We are currently finalizing the program details and will share more updates soon, so do visit this page again very soon.