Aramco to launch Jafurah condensate exports in February

Saudi Aramco is set to commercialise the first liquid flows from its strategic Jafurah unconventional gas basin, with sources telling Reuters that condensate exports are scheduled to commence in February. This marks a definitive shift for the $100bn project, which CEO Amin Nasser has previously termed the “crown jewel” of the national energy portfolio, moving it from a development phase into active revenue generation.

The Jafurah basin, estimated to hold 229 trillion standard cubic feet of raw gas and 75bn barrels of condensate, represents the largest liquid-rich shale play outside the United States. Its operational launch is the linchpin of Riyadh’s strategy to increase gas production capacity by 60% by 2030.

According to sources familiar with the matter, Aramco plans to export four to six 500,000-barrel cargoes of Jafurah condensate per month. Sales are reportedly being conducted through private negotiations, with samples potentially available to buyers by the end of this month.

A preliminary crude assay reviewed by Reuters indicates the condensate has an API gravity of 49.7 degrees and a sulphur content of 0.17%. Crucially for downstream buyers, the grade boasts a petrochemical feedstock naphtha yield of around 40%. Armaan Ashraf, global head of NGLs at consultancy FGE, noted that the grade is positioned to compete with heavier condensates and ultra-light crudes. He added that as a gas-project by-product, these volumes should technically fall outside Saudi Arabia’s OPEC production quotas.

Data from analytics firm Kpler shows Aramco has already ramped up Khuff condensate exports from the eastern province to 49,000 bpd in 2025, up from 18,000 bpd in 2024, signalling the market is being primed for these new volumes.

The Ministry of Finance confirmed in its 2026 budget statement that Phase One production began earlier this month with a capacity of 450mn cubic feet per day. The primary strategic driver is to displace crude oil currently burned for domestic power generation – roughly 500,000 barrels per day – thereby freeing up higher-value crude for export.

To support this capital-intensive expansion, Aramco has leveraged sophisticated financing. In August, the company finalised an $11bn lease-and-leaseback agreement with a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), an entity now under BlackRock. This deal created the Jafurah Midstream Gas Company, in which the GIP-led consortium holds a 49% stake, validating the project’s appeal to foreign direct investment.

While $12.4bn in Phase Two contracts were awarded in July to contractors including Sinopec and Tecnicas Reunidas, the project has faced headwinds. Upstream reported in July that Aramco had placed specific construction packages in “pause mode,” suggesting that while the macro trajectory is positive, the execution of the full 2bn cubic feet per day target by 2030 remains a complex logistical challenge.