Middle East projects keep engineers in demand

Overseas projects are continuing to generate strong demand for the experience and expertise offered by established engineering firms – as highlighted by major contract awards announced by Petrofac and AMEC in the Middle East.

Saudi Aramco has awarded Petrofac two engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) packages - together worth around $1.4 billion - for Saudi Aramco’s Jazan Refinery and Terminal project.

When complete, the refinery will produce around 400,000 barrels of oil per day and have associated terminal facilities on the Red Sea near Jazan in the south west of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Petrofac’s Saudi Arabia office will lead the project management delivery of the work scope which covers tank farms in the north and south areas of the development. Both packages are scheduled to be undertaken within three years.

These are some of the first major awards made by Saudi Aramco under its In-Kingdom EPC programme and both packages are scheduled to be undertaken within three years, noted Petrofac.

The packages will “serve to reinforce the relationships and experience we have developed through our recent involvement on the Karan project as well as our ongoing Petro Rabigh projects for Saudi Aramco and Sumitomo Chemical Co Ltd,” said Marwan Chedid, chief executive of Petrofac’s engineering, construction, operations & maintenance (ECOM) division.

“As this project progresses, we look forward to working closely with Saudi Aramco and our contractors to further deepen our engineering and project management capability in the Kingdom,” he added.

Meanwhile, London-based engineering and project management company AMEC has won a $528-million project management consultancy (PMC) contract with Kuwait National Petroleum Co. (KNPC) for a new oil refinery at Al Zour, Kuwait.

When completed in 2018 the multi-billion dollar refinery is expected to be the largest in the Middle East and will increase Kuwait’s refinery capacity by 615,000 barrels per day. The contract is expected to create around 300 new jobs for AMEC.

The project is part of a Kuwait strategy to produce cleaner fuels to meet its electrical power generation growth and demand while adhering to the latest environmental standards.

“This contract award supports our Vision 2015 strategy, which includes growing our presence in the Middle East’s oil and gas upstream, midstream and downstream sectors, said Dr Hisham Mahmoud, AMEC’s group president, growth regions.

“It is also an example of our ability to leverage our global design, engineering and project management expertise to deliver complex projects for our customers anywhere in the world.”

Alan McLean, AMEC’s vice president of Middle East, Africa and CIS business, added: “This project is significant for AMEC in the Middle East and recognises the experience and knowledge we have gained by delivering PMC contracts in the region. The project is also important for KNPC in enabling it to meet the demands of its customers.”

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia remains the Middle East region’s fastest growing projects market, reporting a 28% year-on-year growth, according to MEED’s Gulf Projects Index.

Overall, MEED’s Gulf region projects market index rose by 0.2% to $2.49 trillion as of the third quarter of 2012. The Index is up 5% compared to the same period in 2011.

The index further shows that Kuwait recorded the region’s biggest rise in the value of its projects sector, increasing 1.4% to $186 billion - of the last week of the third quarter of 2012.

There was also strong growth in the UAE’s projects industry was attributed to the revival of three projects worth $960 million, and the launch of three new projects worth a combined $230 million.

Oman continues its growth trend, with the value of its projects sector rising 12% compared with the same period in 2011; while Bahrain and Qatar remained relatively steady.