On June 30, 2024, it was announced that contracts worth over $25 billion had been signed for the second phase of the Jafurah gas field expansion and the third phase of the main natural gas network expansion. Saudi Arabia has taken an important step in the natural gas sector, with the goal of increasing natural gas sales to at least 160% of 2021 levels by 2030.

There are a total of 16 contracts related to the second phase development of Jafurah, with a total value of approximately $12.4 billion, covering natural gas compression facilities, pipeline construction, natural gas processing trains, utilities, sulfur, and export facilities.

Saudi Aramco has also signed 15 contracts worth a total of $8.8 billion for the third phase expansion of the main natural gas system, with plans to expand the network by 2028 by adding approximately 4000 kilometers of pipelines and 17 new natural gas compression trains, and increasing daily processing capacity to 3.2 billion standard cubic feet.

In addition, Saudi Aramco has signed a total of 23 natural gas drilling platform contracts worth $2.4 billion, as well as two directional drilling contracts worth $612 million. Between December 2022 and May 2024, Jafurah has secured 13 oil well cooperation contracts worth $1.63 billion.

Saudi Energy Minister Abdul Aziz bin Salman stated that these projects are planned to connect with 40 related facilities, including power plants, water treatment facilities, and petrochemical manufacturing plants, and are expected to increase GDP by approximately $20 billion.

In the Jafurah gas field expansion project, companies that have won contracts include China's state-owned energy giant China Petrochemical Corporation and an engineering consortium led by Hyundai Engineering Construction Co., Ltd. in South Korea.

Jafurah is the largest unconventional non oil associated gas field in Saudi Arabia, with huge reserves of 229 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 75 billion barrels of condensate.

The development of Jafurah is expected to further strengthen Saudi Arabia's position as the world's top natural gas producer. Previously, the first phase of development was launched in November 2021 and is expected to be put into operation in the third quarter of 2025. Saudi Aramco predicts that by 2030, the total investment in Jafurah's lifecycle will exceed $100 billion, with an estimated daily production of 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas sales, as well as significant amounts of ethane, natural gas condensate, and condensate.

Saudi Aramco's main natural gas system is a pipeline network system that connects its major natural gas production and processing bases nationwide. This expansion will increase opportunities for industrial, utility, and other sector customers to access domestic natural gas supply, providing alternatives to greenhouse gas emissions lower than oil. Keywords: the Belt and Road news, the Belt and Road project, overseas project.

Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser emphasized that these projects will help Saudi Aramco increase natural gas production, enrich its product line, increase production of ethane and natural gas, and support Saudi Arabia's transition to a low-carbon power system. (This article is from the official website of Jiandao: www.seetao. com. Reproduction without permission is not allowed, otherwise it will be punished. Please indicate Jiandao's website and the original link when reprinting.) Jiandao's mechanical column editor/Zhou Yingwen