JEDDAH, 29 April 2004 — Senior executives of six international oil companies including Shell, Total and Lukoil will take part in the first Saudi gas conference scheduled to be held in Dammam from May 15-17.
Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed, president of the Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said some 500 business executives from within and outside the Kingdom would take part in the three-day event.
“The conference will be a meeting place between representatives of international oil companies and local companies, contractors, service providers and suppliers of equipment and accessories to the gas industry,” he said.
The conference comes after Saudi Arabia signed landmark deals with firms from Russia, China, Italy, and Spain for upstream gas exploration and production in the northern Rub Al-Khali or Empty Quarter.
“Representatives of Shell, Total, Lukoil Overseas, Sinopec International, ENI and Repsol will participate in the conference,” Rashed said.
Shell’s Regional Director for the Middle East, Russia and CIS, Dr. Ceri Powell and Total’s Vice President for Middle East Alain Lechevalier will discuss plans and prospects for their companies in gas development projects.
Essam Al-Bayat, vice president of Saudi Aramco for project management, will present a paper detailing Aramco’s pivotal role in the development of upstream gas projects in the country.
Three joint ventures — Lukoil Saudi Arabia, Sino-Saudi Gas and Enirespa Gas — have been established for the implementation of the Rub Al-Khali projects, in which Saudi Aramco has a 20-percent stake in each. The projects are expected to fetch total investment worth SR75 billion in five years.
Ameen Muhammad Al-Shibani, adviser for planning at Saudi Aramco, has estimated the total investment in the three projects at about 15 percent of the Kingdom’s gross national product. They will create 150,000 indirect jobs and 35,000 direct jobs.
In December last year, Shell, Total and Saudi Aramco established the first upstream gas development joint venture, South Rub Al-Khali Company.
The Kingdom currently produces seven billion cubic feet of gas per day through its five gas plants at Hawiyah, Haradh, Shedgum, Berri and Uthmaniyah. By 2025 the expected demand would surge to 14 billion cubic feet.
Currently world gas demand is estimated at 235 billion cubic feet a day. This increase can be attributed to growing international preference for gas as a fuel source due to its environmental advantages and desirability as a fuel for electricity power generation in high-efficiency gas turbine systems.
