Saudi Aramco to set up projects in Ras Al-Khair Industrial City

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi Aramco), the national oil firm, has signed two agreements with the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu (RCJY) to allocate industrial locations for establishing two industrial projects in Ras Al-Khair Industrial City, it announced on Sunday. 

Under the agreements, RCJY will allocate two industrial locations. In the first location, Aramco will set up a manufacturing facility for onshore drilling rigs and related equipment on an area of 500,000 square meters, while the other 300,000-square meter location will be used to develop a casting and forging facility.

The new casting and forging facility will serve the maritime industry and the manufacturing of equipment related to the oil and gas supply chain, the company said. 

“These projects will support the growth and localization of the supply chain related to the energy sector and help enhance the speed of supply and reduce associated costs for Saudi Aramco,” Fathi Al-Saleem, Manager of the Maritime Yard Department, Saudi Aramco, said.

 He added that the projects are in line with the objective of the company’s In-Kingdom Total Value Add (IKTVA) program, which is to maximize local content in manufactured goods and services, up to 70 percent by 2021.

Ali Alshaghithri, General Manager of Strategic Planning and Investment Development, Saudi Aramco, emphasized the role of RCJY in providing the proper and conducive environment to stimulate industrial growth in the Kingdom, paving the way for the Kingdom to strategically position itself in the mining industry, to become a global competitor in this field.

“The most important strategic objective of the industrial city of Ras Al-Khair is the development of the mining sector in line with the Kingdom's strategic direction to diversify the sources of the national income, as well as seizing advantages of the integration between industries in Ras Al-Khair and petrochemical industries in Jubail Industrial City, creating a dynamic synergy involving a variety of manufacturing-based industries,” he said.

The integration will create a significant number of job opportunities for young Saudis, Alshaghithri added.

Earlier on Sunday, Aramco awarded the contract to build three temporary construction facilities to AZMEEL Contracting Company, as part of its gas compression program in Haradh and Hawiyah. 

Aramco said it has recently signed nearly $4.5 billion worth of agreements with several service contractors for oil and gas projects aimed to enhance its energy sustainability, diversify the economy, expand gas production, and localize domestic content under the IKTVA program.