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McDermott Int’l Plans to Establish Highly-Developed Facilities in KSA

Aramco’s Marine Project. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Aramco’s Marine Project. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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McDermott Int’l Plans to Establish Highly-Developed Facilities in KSA

Aramco’s Marine Project. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Aramco’s Marine Project. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Houston-based McDermott International announced the construction of new highly-developed facilities in Saudi Arabia to support its operations in the Middle East, as well as support Aramco’s In-Kingdom Total Value Add (IKTVA) program.

McDermott continues to develop infrastructure in the fields of wind energy and other renewable energies in the kingdom.

McDermott President and CEO David Dickson stated that the two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) signed between McDermott and Aramco, support Vision 2030 and Aramco's initiative to enhance its added value and presence inside the Kingdom. He added that this complies with the initiatives launched in Saudi Arabia and the ability to provide local solutions to meet the needs of the modern business environment.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Dickson expected that the two new facilities, set to be built in Ras al-Kheir, will enhance McDermott's manufacturing capacity in the Middle East from 8 million hours to 16 million hours a year, which will provide better service in the Middle East and other regions.

Dickson emphasized that McDermott is committed to using the local Saudi competencies to operate its facilities and develop their expertise, adding that he looks forward to recruiting and developing qualified Saudi talent at a high level in the Kingdom.

He stressed that oil and gas will continue to play an important role in meeting the world's energy needs in the foreseeable future.

Dickson also expects McDermott to play a key role in developing some of the infrastructure in wind and other renewable energy markets because of its growing importance and compatibility with many of the manufacturing, installation and project implementation needs.

He stressed that the oil and gas will remain at the heart of the work of McDermott, but there are other opportunities to expand the scope of its work beyond that.

"We are fully committed to supporting Aramco's added value within the Kingdom, and although we have come a long way in this area, we need to do more, and we are focusing on doing so," Dickson concluded.

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Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
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Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)

The United States on Thursday called on Israel to extend its cooperation with Palestinian banks for another year, to avoid blocking vital transactions in the occupied West Bank.

"I am glad that Israel has allowed its banks to continue cooperating with Palestinian banks, but I remain convinced that a one-year extension of the waiver to facilitate this cooperation is needed," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday, on the sidelines of a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Rio de Janeiro.

In May, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened to cut off a vital banking channel between Israel and the West Bank in response to three European countries recognizing the State of Palestine.

On June 30, however, Smotrich extended a waiver that allows cooperation between Israel's banking system and Palestinian banks in the occupied West Bank for four months, according to Israeli media, according to AFP.

The Times of Israel newspaper reported that the decision on the waiver was made at a cabinet meeting in a "move that saw Israel legalize several West Bank settlement outposts."

The waiver was due to expire at the end of June, and the extension permitted Israeli banks to process payments for salaries and services to the Palestinian Authority in shekels, averting a blow to a Palestinian economy already devastated by the war in Gaza.

The Israeli threat raised serious concerns in the United States, which said at the time it feared "a humanitarian crisis" if banking ties were cut.

According to Washington, these banking channels are key to nearly $8 billion of imports from Israel to the West Bank, including electricity, water, fuel and food.