Aramco Gets Nod to Develop Top Saudi Gas Field
Saudi national oil company Saudi Aramco announced in a statement on February 22 it had secured regulatory clearance to develop the giant Jafurah gas field in the kingdom's east.
Jafurah is Saudi Arabia's largest unconventional, non-associated gas field, with an estimated 200 trillion ft3 of resources which Aramco said would serve as a valuable feedstock for the country's growing petrochemical and metal industries. The company expects to produce the first gas from Jafurah in early 2024, with output seen rising to 2.2bn ft3/day by 2036. It will also flow around 550,000 barrels/day of liquids.
Development plans for the field were reviewed by the Saudi hydrocarbons commission in a meeting chaired by Crown prince Mohammed bin Salman on February 21, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA). The project will require $110bn of investment, generate $8.6bn in annual income for the government and contribute $20bn to Saudi Arabia's gross domestic product each year, the prince said.
Saudi Arabia has intensified its focus on gas development in recent years, in order to replace oil with gas as the main fuel for generating its electricity. The kingdom also wants to expand its gas-derived petrochemicals production, and have some gas spare for export.