Saudi Aramco, Bahrain's Bapco commission 112km oil pipeline

Saudi Aramco and the Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) have commissioned a 112km oil pipeline as part of efforts to meet the latter's burgeoning energy demand. 

The oil pipeline is a joint venture between the two state-owned companies and will transport crude oil from Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq Plants facility, its biggest oil-processing site, to Bapco's refinery in Bahrain.

The AB-4 pipeline consists of three a 42km onshore Saudi segment, a 28km onshore segment in Bahrain, and a 42-km offshore element.

It can transport up to 350,000 barrels of oil per day and is expected to meet supply requirements for the next decade. The 73-year-old legacy pipeline that had thus far supplied Bapco will Aramco's crude oil will be decommissioned. 

Abdullah Mansour, acting executive head of pipelines, distribution, and terminals at Saudi Aramco, said the AB-4 pipeline marked "another chapter" in its relationship with Bapco in the energy sector.

The 112km pipeline's commissioning comes days after Aramco and French oil giant Total inked an agreement to launch engineering studies for a $5bn (SAR18.8bn) petrochemicals complex in Jubail. The parties singed a joint agreement giving Dhahran-headquartered Aramco a 67.5% stake in the project, with a 37.5% share for Total.

Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil giant, which is planning to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in 2021 that could be the largest flotation in stock history, recently announced plans to build two islands off the coast of Jubail to support oil-drilling activities.

Called Site A and Site B, the two man-made islands will cover a total land area of 1.6ha and 26ha respectively.

Construction Week Online Contribution Time: 11-Oct-2018 07:55 (GMT)
Construction Week Online Last Update Time: 11-Oct-2018 07:55 (GMT)