Aramco Secures $3.3Bln Contracts to Build Gas Facility in Saudi Arabia

A view of an Aramco gas plant in the city of Julail, Saudi Arabia. (Aramco)
A view of an Aramco gas plant in the city of Julail, Saudi Arabia. (Aramco)
TT

Aramco Secures $3.3Bln Contracts to Build Gas Facility in Saudi Arabia

A view of an Aramco gas plant in the city of Julail, Saudi Arabia. (Aramco)
A view of an Aramco gas plant in the city of Julail, Saudi Arabia. (Aramco)

Saudi Aramco has awarded contracts worth more than $3.3 billion to Chinese company Sinopec and Spain’s Tecnicas Reunidas to build a gas facility in Saudi Arabia.

According to a disclosure on the Spanish Stock Exchange, Sinopec will own 65 percent of the project, and Tecnicas Reunidas will have a 35 percent share.

The statement added that the contracts cover engineering, procurement, and construction, including building liquefied natural gas (LNG) distillation facilities in the Al-Riyas project. They also include the provision of storage and export facilities.

The new facilities that will be developed by the two companies will fractionate 510,000 barrels per day (MBD) of NGLs. The project's expected duration is about 46 months for Package 1 and about 41 months for Package 2.

This is the first project awarded to Tecnicas Reunidas by Saudi Aramco following the Strategic Alliance recently signed by the Spanish company with Sinopec Engineering Group to develop common projects.

The project's primary objective is to enable the fractionation of NGLs, thus producing ethane, propane, butane, and pentane.

In October, Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said the company is looking at more investments in LNG to boost its plans to become a leading player in the seaborne gas market.

In September 2023, Aramco signed definitive agreements to acquire a strategic minority stake in MidOcean Energy for $500 million. The company said the agreement with MidOcean Energy marks Aramco’s first international investment in LNG.



Gold Eyes Best Quarter in over Eight Years

A participant shows gold bars during the 21st edition of the international gold and jewelry exhibition at the Kuwait International Fairgrounds in Kuwait City on May 23, 2024. (Photo by Yasser AL ZAYYAT / AFP)
A participant shows gold bars during the 21st edition of the international gold and jewelry exhibition at the Kuwait International Fairgrounds in Kuwait City on May 23, 2024. (Photo by Yasser AL ZAYYAT / AFP)
TT

Gold Eyes Best Quarter in over Eight Years

A participant shows gold bars during the 21st edition of the international gold and jewelry exhibition at the Kuwait International Fairgrounds in Kuwait City on May 23, 2024. (Photo by Yasser AL ZAYYAT / AFP)
A participant shows gold bars during the 21st edition of the international gold and jewelry exhibition at the Kuwait International Fairgrounds in Kuwait City on May 23, 2024. (Photo by Yasser AL ZAYYAT / AFP)

Gold halted its record run on Friday but remained on track for its best quarter since 2016 after a rally catalysed by an outsized US Federal Reserve interest rate cut, while markets braced themselves for a crucial inflation report due later in the day.

Spot gold was down 0.1% at $2,666.50 per ounce as of 1115 GMT, below the all-time peak of $2,685.42 hit in the previous session. It is heading for its best quarter since the first three months of 2016.

US gold futures fell 0.2% to $2,688.90, Reuters reported.

"The market at this point in time has priced in all the good news and there's also some hesitancy from fresh buyers to get involved at these record high levels," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

Bullion has risen 29% so far this year, hitting successive record peaks after last week's half-percentage-point cut by the Federal Reserve and the stimulus measures announced by China earlier this week.

Silver prices surged, tracking bullion's strong performance, though some analysts warn that the rally may fade.

"Overall, industrial demand is still supportive for silver. But we need to have a stronger economic performance in China as well as in other developed countries," said ANZ commodity strategist Soni Kumari.

The surge in silver prices is more a spillover impact from gold, Kumari said.

Spot silver eased 0.1% to $31.98 per ounce, after hitting its highest since December 2012 at $32.71 on Thursday. It is set for a third straight week of gains.

"I do believe silver will continue to outperform gold. But as we all know, wherever gold goes, silver tends to go, but faster," Hansen added.

Both gold and silver serve as safe-haven investments, but the latter has more industrial applications, so tends to underperform during recessions and outperform when economies expand.

Inflows into gold exchange-traded funds, particularly from Western investors, are set to rise in coming months, adding yet more positive stimulus for already record high bullion prices. Some banks expect gold to rise towards $3,000.

In other metals, platinum was up 0.5% at $1,012.40 but palladium fell nearly 1.5% to $1,031.75.