Saudi Arabia, China Forge Giant Partnerships in Energy, Chemicals and Construction

With the conclusion of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s official visit to Saudi Arabia, major Saudi companies working in the field of energy, chemicals and construction announced giant partnerships with China.

- Refining and petrochemicals

Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s largest integrated companies in the field of energy and chemicals, and the Shandong Energy Group revealed that they were exploring opportunities for cooperation in the field of integrated refining and petrochemicals in China.

The two companies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which includes a potential crude oil supply agreement and chemicals products offtake agreement, supporting Aramco’s role in building a thriving downstream sector in Shandong Province, it said.

The signing ceremony, which was conducted with the participation of Shandong Provincial People’s Government, underlined the importance of Aramco’s collaboration with Chinese companies. The scope of the MoU extends to cooperation across technologies related to hydrogen, renewables and carbon capture and storage, it added.

Mohammed Al Qahtani, Aramco senior vice president of downstream, said: “Through collaborations such as this in China’s energy heartland, we are creating new pathways for growth in a country that is driving the increased integration of refining and petrochemical processes.”

- Signing of 9 Agreements

Saudi ACWA Power has also signed a set of MoUs with nine Chinese entities. These agreements aim to launch joint cooperation to invest in ACWA Power’s global clean and renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia and countries committed to the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative.

Mohammad Abdullah Abunayyan, Chairman of ACWA Power, said: “As a leading developer of power, water and green hydrogen assets worldwide, and being headquartered in a Belt and Road Initiative country, we are in a unique position to support both the energy transition and economic transformation envisioned by Saudi Arabia’s forward-looking and iconic Vision 2030, as well as China’s Belt and Road initiative.”

The strategic partners from China include Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Bank of China, SPIC Huanghe Hydropower Development Company, China Southern Power Grid International, Power China International Group, China Energy International Group, Jinko Solar Company, Sungrow Power Supply Company and Jolywood Solar Technology Company, ACWA Power said in a statement on Friday.

Cooperation between ACWA Power and China dates back to 2009, when the Saudi company opened its first offices in the Chinese capital, Beijing.

Today, ACWA Power enjoys strategic relations with Chinese companies in the field of engineering, procurement and construction contracting, equipment supply, financing institutions and investment partners. These companies contribute to the implementation of 47 projects within the ACWA Power investment portfolio in 12 countries around the world.

- Construction projects

The Saudi Ministry of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Housing represented by the Ministry’s Agency for Stimulating Housing Supply and Real Estate Development, and the National Housing Company, signed an MoU for cooperation with 3 Chinese companies to contribute to the provision of more than 100,000 housing units.

This agreement comes as an extension of the strategic partnership that the ministry holds with a number of regional and international bodies, with the aim to exchange experiences and raise the real estate supply, develop business and improve performance efficiency.

- Digital economy

Saudi Arabia signed a strategic partnership for cooperation in the fields of digital economy with China. The agreement was signed by Engineer Abdullah Al-Sawaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, and on the Chinese side, Minister of Industry and Information Technology Wang Zhigang, in the presence of a number of officials from both sides.

The partnership establishes a framework for cooperation, covering the areas of digital economy, communications and information technology, promoting research and innovation in the field of emerging technologies, in addition to improving aspects of communications infrastructure, and enabling the growth of digital entrepreneurship through emerging business models such as financial technology and e-commerce.

Within the framework of the partnership, the two sides will cooperate in the field of digital technology applications and radio frequency spectrum management, in addition to developing and building local capacities in contact and data centers, developing digital platforms and cloud computing services, and expanding submarine cable projects.

The US Coast Guard warned of possible Texas port closures from Corpus Christi to Houston and began restricting vessel traffic because of Tropical Storm Beryl, which is expected to become a hurricane before making landfall by Monday morning at Port Lavaca.

Port closures could bring to a temporary halt shipments of crude oil to refineries and motor fuels from those plants.

Port condition "Yankee" was set by the Coast Guard captain of the port of Corpus Christi on Saturday afternoon, restricting vessel movement in ports from Matagorda Bay, 101 miles (163 km) southwest of Houston, to the US-Mexico border.

Citgo Petroleum Corp was cutting production at its 165,000 barrel-per-day Corpus Christi, Texas, refinery on Saturday ahead of the approach of Beryl to the Texas coast.

Citgo plans to keep the Corpus Christi refinery running at minimum production as the storm moves up the coast toward a projected landfall at Port Lavaca, a pipeline hub.

Oil producer Shell Plc completed the evacuation of workers from its Perdido production platform in the US-regulated Gulf of Mexico ahead of the approach of the storm, the company said on Friday night.

Production on Perdido was shut prior to the evacuations. Shell said it also evacuated workers from the Whale platform, which is due to start production later this year.

Gibson Energy, which operates a large oil terminal in Corpus Christi, said operations were continuing, but it would take further steps depending on the forecast.

The storm was moving on Saturday with maximum sustained winds near 60 mph (95 kmh), the National Hurricane Center said.

The latest forecasts would put Corpus Christi on the dry side of the storm where the lowest winds and least rain could be expected. But Beryl could bring gale-force winds to the port, which is why the Coast Guard restricts traffic or shuts the port.

Most of the northern Gulf's offshore oil and gas production is east of Beryl's forecast track.

US Gulf of Mexico offshore production of about 1.8 million barrels per day accounts for about 14% of total US crude output, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Any impact on supplies could push up prices of US oil and offshore crude grades.

Oil major Chevron Corp, among the biggest US offshore producers, said on Friday that production from its operated assets remained normal. But it evacuated nonessential personnel from some of its Gulf of Mexico facilities.

Murphy Oil Corp said it has not shut in production or evacuated personnel, and continues to monitor the storm.

Saudi Arabia, China Forge Giant Partnerships in Energy, Chemicals and Construction