Aramco, Petronas Launch Corporate Identity of Joint Ventures

 Abdulaziz Judaimi, Senior Vice President, Downstream, Saudi Aramco; Datuk Md Arif Mahmood, Executive Vice President Downstream, PETRONAS; Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, President & CEO, PETRONAS; Amin Nasser, President & CEO, Saudi Aramco (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Abdulaziz Judaimi, Senior Vice President, Downstream, Saudi Aramco; Datuk Md Arif Mahmood, Executive Vice President Downstream, PETRONAS; Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, President & CEO, PETRONAS; Amin Nasser, President & CEO, Saudi Aramco (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Aramco, Petronas Launch Corporate Identity of Joint Ventures

 Abdulaziz Judaimi, Senior Vice President, Downstream, Saudi Aramco; Datuk Md Arif Mahmood, Executive Vice President Downstream, PETRONAS; Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, President & CEO, PETRONAS; Amin Nasser, President & CEO, Saudi Aramco (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Abdulaziz Judaimi, Senior Vice President, Downstream, Saudi Aramco; Datuk Md Arif Mahmood, Executive Vice President Downstream, PETRONAS; Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, President & CEO, PETRONAS; Amin Nasser, President & CEO, Saudi Aramco (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Aramco and Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) launched on Tuesday the corporate identity for their joint ventures in the Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) located in Pengerang, Johor, Malaysia, namely Pengerang Refining Company Sdn Bhd (PRefChem Refining) and Pengerang Petrochemical Company Sdn Bhd (PRefChem Petrochemical)*2, collectively known as “PRefChem”.

Earlier in March, PETRONAS and Saudi Aramco concluded the Share Purchase Agreement for equal ownership and participation in the operations of the refinery, cracker and selected petrochemical facilities in the PIC.

A ceremony was held at the complex which also saw the unveiling of PRefChem’s logo, and it was attended by President and CEO of Saudi Aramco Amin Nasser, President and CEO of PETRONAS Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, Executive Vice President Downstream of PETRONAS Datuk Md Arif Mahmood, as well as other officials.

Speaking at the occasion, Amin Nasser stated that it marks an important milestone for this joint venture project, which is an integral part of Saudi Aramco’s refining and fuels marketing and chemicals business strategies and will help in strengthening the company’s growth position in Southeast Asia through crude supply and world-scale downstream operations.

This venture also closely aligns with Aramco's downstream strategy to invest in a global refining and petrochemicals system of world-scale manufacturing complexes in key regions with participated refining capacity of eight to 10 million barrels per day by 2030, he added.

"We are committed to help enhance the area’s prosperity and look forward to this new stage of cooperation with our valued partner PETRONAS," asserted Nasser.

CEO Nasser explained that Malaysia provides a great opportunity for Aramco’s downstream portfolio expansion in Asia and PRefChem’s strategic location in Pengerang will clearly position the country as a prolific regional energy hub, at the same time serve to enhance energy security in the Asia-Pacific region.

Also, Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee spoke at the event describing the integrated partnership as a "visionary move by two professionally-run national oil companies where both are able to leverage on each other’s strengths and share technical capabilities as well as experiences for mutual benefit."

"I am proud that we are among the pioneer of national oil companies partnering with one another to ensure better positioning for both organisations in an increasingly competitive market," he added.

He indicated that this partnership was built on a shared vision and shared values that align a number of priorities for both parties including – upholding the trust that both organisations have in contributing to both nations and their people.

PRefChem also celebrated a major milestone with the mechanical completion of Package 2 comprising the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU). The mechanical completion certificate was presented to Sun Lili, President of Sinopec Engineering, by Datuk Md Arif Mahmood. Both Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee and Nasser attended the event.

Dr Wong said that the circular movement of the logo represents collaboration, precision and bonding between PETRONAS and Saudi Aramco, while the blue and green colors portray PRefChem as a vibrant, dynamic and environmentally friendly company.

The refinery complex and cracker are now 96.54 percent complete while the petrochemical facilities has achieved 84.8 percent completion.



Dubai International Airport Sees Record 92.3 million Passengers in 2024

People queue at the check-in counter at the Dubai International Airport, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 17, 2024. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo
People queue at the check-in counter at the Dubai International Airport, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 17, 2024. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo
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Dubai International Airport Sees Record 92.3 million Passengers in 2024

People queue at the check-in counter at the Dubai International Airport, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 17, 2024. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo
People queue at the check-in counter at the Dubai International Airport, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 17, 2024. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo

Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, saw a record 92.3 million passengers pass through its terminals in 2024, officials announced Thursday.

The result cements Dubai's bounce-back from the coronavirus pandemic, surpassing the previous record set in 2018 for the first time. Today, the airport feels like it's bursting at the seams with aircraft movements and crowds moving through its terminals, The AP reported.

Authorities plan to move operations in 2032 to the city-state's second airport after a nearly $35 billion upgrade.

Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, first announced the new passenger figure on X. The state-owned airport is home to the long-haul carrier Emirates, which powers the network of state-owned and state-linked businesses known as "Dubai Inc."

“Dubai is the airport of the world ... and a new world in the aviation sector,” Sheikh Mohammed wrote.

Speaking with The Associated Press, Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths pointed to the fact that the airport had served more than 700 million passengers over the last decade — closing in on twice the population of the United States.

The 2024 result “is not only a record for us, of course, but as the No. 1 airport in the world, it’s a new world record for international passengers through any airport in the world," Griffiths said. "And the great thing is that’s with two runways on a very limited geographical footprint, which hasn’t really changed at all.”

In 2023, the airport, known as DXB, had 86.9 million passengers. Its 2019, traffic was 86.3 million passengers. It had 89.1 million passengers in 2018 — its previous busiest-ever year before the pandemic, while 66 million passengers passed through in 2022.

In 2024, India remained the top destination market for DXB, with 12 million passengers. Saudi Arabia followed with 7.6 million and the United Kingdom at 6.2 million. DXB and Al Maktoum International Airport, known as DWC, serve 106 airlines flying to 272 cities in 107 countries across the world.