Meed | Aramco outlines planned contract awards for 2023-25

Aramco outlines planned contract awards for 2023-25

22 May 2023

Saudi Aramco plans to develop and award 90 medium to large-sized projects in the period 2023-25.

Speaking at the Future Projects Forum in Riyadh on 22 May, Abdulkarim al-Ghamdi, senior vice president, project management at Aramco, outlined key capital investments, some of which are already out to bid or close to contract award.

The oil projects include:

Zuluf offshore development
Marjan development
Berri development
Haradh expansion

The gas projects include:

Fadhili gas plant expansion
Jafurah development
Riyas natural gas liquids fractionation
Gas compression

Refining and petrochemicals projects include:

Liquids-to-chemicals programme
Refinery residue upgrades
Sulphur recovery upgrades

Pipeline, distribution and utilities projects include:

Master gas system phase three
Ras al-Khair export terminal
Vapour-handling facilities
Upgrade marine terminals
Pipeline rehabilitation programme

Civil infrastructure and other projects include:

Steel plate manufacturing
Engine manufacturing
Maritime development
National maritime infrastructure

Central to the development of these projects, Al-Ghamdi emphasised the use of technology: "Using smart artificial intelligence (AI), we have been able to move to a smart health, safety and environmental (HSE) system, to detect any potential hazards before they occur. We are also using robotics instead of traditional methods to save time and money, and lower carbon emissions.”

Other innovations include the use of satellite-driven telemetry systems to map and detect any issues during the design stage. Smart site solutions are also being employed to connect with a centralised control system to detect problems. This reduces the use of staff on site, which saves operational costs.

In terms of spending, Aramco’s recently published results showed that capital expenditure in the first quarter of this year increased by about 15 per cent, at $8.74bn, compared to the same period last year.

MEED's latest special report on Saudi Arabia includes:

> GIGAPROJECTS: Saudi Arabia under project pressure
> ECONOMY: Riyadh steps up the Vision 2030 tempo
> CONSTRUCTION: Saudi construction project ramp-up accelerates
> UPSTREAM: Aramco slated to escalate upstream spending
> DOWNSTREAM: Petchems ambitions define Saudi downstream
> POWER: Saudi Arabia reinvigorates power sector
> WATER: Saudi water begins next growth phase
> BANKING: Saudi banks bid to keep ahead of the pack
> DATABANK: Riyadh holds its buoyant economic heading