MEOG: Aramco awards Riyas NGL deals

Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil giant, has allocated contracts totalling $3.3bn to an international consortium led by Spanish company Tecnicas Reunidas and China’s Sinopec Engineering. The agreements mark a significant step in the development of the Riyas natural gas liquids (NGL) facility in Saudi Arabia, a key component of Aramco’s extensive onshore and expansion projects. Reports of the Spanish firm’s award have been circulating since early Q4 last year.

Aramco’s strategic move underscores its commitment to expansive capital investments, with $52bn earmarked for the previous year alone. This aggressive investment approach aligns with the company’s overarching goal of substantially enhancing production capacities by the end of the decade.

The joint venture, comprising Tecnicas Reunidas with a 65% stake and Sinopec Engineering holding the remaining 35%, is tasked with executing two critical aspects of the Riyas NGL facility expansion. Tecnicas Reunidas revealed in a statement on January 22 that the contracts encompass “the development of new NGL fractionation facilities in Saudi Arabia.”

These contracts are divided into two packages. The first, known as Package 1, focuses on the execution of Riyas NGL fractionation trains, processing a substantial 510,000 barrels per day of NGLs. Tecnicas Reunidas detailed that “the two trains of Package 1 will process 255,000 bpd each” and will incorporate fractionation, treatment, dehydration and refrigeration units.