JEDDAH: The International Energy Summit, which opens here on Sunday, will witness the signing of an agreement between Saudi Aramco and Total to establish a refinery in the eastern Saudi industrial city of Jubail, informed sources said.
The move reflects Saudi Arabia’s desire to meet the growing energy requirements of countries around the world. The new refinery will have a capacity to supply 400,000 barrels per day and will begin operation by the end of 2012.
Last month the two companies announced their decision to go ahead with the project, which will process Arabian heavy crude to high-quality refined products. The refinery will benefit from the proximity to the Arabian heavy crude supply system and King Fahd Industrial Port.
“At Saudi Aramco we are pleased to announce our commitment to strengthen our strategic partnership with Total by moving forward with the Jubail export refinery project,” said Khalid G. Al-Buainain, senior vice president of Refining Marketing and International.
“By developing this world-class project in Jubail, Saudi Aramco and Total will contribute to supply growing demand for transportation fuels and petrochemicals, especially in Asia and the Middle East, but also in Europe where the deficit of diesel is growing,” said Michel Bénézit, president of Total Refining and Marketing.
The Jeddah meeting of oil producers and consumers, which has been called by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to discuss ways to curb prices, has received international attention. Oil ministers and executives from 35 countries are expected to attend the summit.
King Abdullah will open the summit at Jeddah Hilton. “The participants will discuss possible short-term and long-term solutions to control rising prices,” said Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Ali Al-Naimi. “The call for the meeting reflects Saudi Arabia’s desire to stabilize international market,” he added.
Authorities have arranged a media tour of Khurais oilfield, located 250 kms southwest of Dhahran, for Saudi and foreign journalists the next day of the summit. Khurais, which has a capacity to produce 1.2 million barrels of crude daily, will increase the Kingdom’s production capacity to 12.5 million bpd by 2009, Saudi Aramco said.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday welcomed the Jeddah summit, saying it signals a serious policy dialogue between producers and consumers has begun to address high oil prices. IMF spokesman David Hawley said high oil prices have cut into prospects for global growth and raised inflation risks.