Aramco awards $7.7 billion in contracts for Fadhili plant

State-owned energy giant Aramco has awarded EPC contracts worth USD 7.7 billion to expand production at its Fadhili gas plant in eastern Saudi Arabia, the company announced on Tuesday.

The winners of the EPC packages are Samsung Engineering, GS Engineering & Construction and Nesma & Partners. Details about the composition of the packages were not disclosed.

Aramco is conducting a major expansion of the Fadhili gas plant as part of its strategy to raise gas production by more than 60% by 2030, relative to 2021 levels. The planned works are expected to increase Fadhili’s processing capacity from the current 2.5 bcf (70.8 mcm) per day to 4 bcf (113.3 mcm) per day.

Increasing natural gas production for domestic consumption will allow Aramco to free up crude oil for refining and export. The expansion of the Fadhili gas plant, which is expected to be completed by November 2027, is also expected to add 2,300 tonnes per day to sulphur production.

Wail Al Jaafari, Aramco’s executive vice-president of technical services, said, “The expansion supports our ambitions to develop a lower-carbon hydrogen business, while associated liquids from gas are an important feedstock for the petrochemical industry.”

Construction on the Fadhili gas plant started in 2016 and design processing capacity of 2.5 bcf (70.8 mcm) was reached in 2020.

 

Photo of Fadhili gas plant courtesy of Aramco