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Kuwait Launches Full Operation of Al-Zour Refinery

Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed al-Sabah (C) participated in the opening of the Al-Zour oil Refinery
Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed al-Sabah (C) participated in the opening of the Al-Zour oil Refinery
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Kuwait Launches Full Operation of Al-Zour Refinery

Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed al-Sabah (C) participated in the opening of the Al-Zour oil Refinery
Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed al-Sabah (C) participated in the opening of the Al-Zour oil Refinery

Kuwait’s Emir, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, on Wednesday kicked off the official celebration for the full operation of the Al-Zour Refinery.

This refinery ranks among the world’s top ten and accounts for 43.5% of Kuwait’s refining capacity. It comprises three smaller refineries.

Dr. Imad Al-Atiqi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil in Kuwait, described Al-Zour refinery as one of the key projects in Kuwait’s development plans and a cornerstone of the 2040 Kuwait Petroleum Corporation’s strategic plan.

Al-Atiqi confirmed that the refinery has a significant role in supplying local power stations with clean fuel to meet the increasing demand for electricity due to population growth in the country.

He also explained that the pioneering project embodied the transformation of the developmental vision of “New Kuwait 2035.”

The project provided job opportunities for national labor, with approximately 1,400 recent graduates employed to participate in this monumental national industry, he added.

Al-Atiqi announced that with Al-Zour inauguration, they successfully achieved an extraordinary refining capacity exceeding two million barrels per day, distributed across six oil refineries, three of which located in Kuwait: Mina Abdullah, Mina Al-Ahmadi, and Al-Zour, collectively producing 1.415 million barrels per day.

The other three refineries are located outside Kuwait: Al-Duqm in Oman, Nghi Son in Vietnam, and Milazzo in Italy, with Kuwait’s share of their total production reaching approximately 600,000 barrels per day.

Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) Acting CEO Eng. Wadha Al-Khateeb said the inauguration of Al-Zour Refinery was an accomplishment added to the Clean Fuel Project at Al-Ahmadi and Abdullah Ports Refineries, launched in March 2022, which was “a milestone in history of oil and gas industry in our beloved nation, particularly refining industry.”

Al-Zour Refinery will have a production capacity of 615,000 barrels per day, she said, a strong push for Kuwait oil refining in line with international environmental standards, which would also enable KPC and its affiliate companies to expand the export and marketing of their products.

She said Al-Zour Refinery was capable of receiving all kinds of oils and could produce high-quality products like fuel oil, diesel, naphtha and low-sulfur fuel oil.

These products, added Al-Khateeb, could be exported to more than 30 countries in the region and around the world through a pier attached to the refinery.

Al-Zour Refinery also includes the largest complex for sulfur cracking units, said Al-Khateeb.

She said the new refinery would boost the State of Kuwait’s refining capacity from 800,000 bpd to 1.415 million bpd.

Al-Zour Refinery, she went on, would also use treated water for industrial and irrigation purposes. It includes stations to monitor air quality and uses special boilers to reduce emissions.

She said the oil sector was keen on contributing to facing climate change to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

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Business

IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
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IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference on Emerging Market Economies (EME) to enhance cooperation between the two institutions.

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki, SPA reported.

The agreement aims to strengthen coordination in economic and financial policy areas, including surveillance and lending activities, data and analytical exchange, capacity building, and the provision of technical assistance, in support of regional financial and economic stability.

Both sides affirmed that the MoU represents an important step toward deepening their strategic partnership and strengthening the regional financial safety net, serving member countries and enhancing their ability to address economic challenges.

Business

Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
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Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT

The Federation of Saudi Chambers announced the formation of the first joint Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council for its inaugural term (1447–1451 AH) and the election of Salman bin Hassan Al-Oqayel as its chairman.

Al-Oqayel said the council’s formation marks a pivotal milestone in economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, reflecting a practical approach to enabling the business sectors in both countries to capitalize on promising investment opportunities and strengthen bilateral trade and investment partnerships, SPA reported.

He noted that trade between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait reached approximately SAR9.5 billion by the end of November 2025, including SAR8 billion in Saudi exports and SAR1.5 billion in Kuwaiti imports.

Business

Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
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Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).

Harvard University economics professor Pol Antràs said Saudi Arabia represents an exceptional model in the shifting global trade landscape, differing fundamentally from traditional emerging-market frameworks. He also stressed that globalization has not ended but has instead re-formed into what he describes as fragmented integration.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, Antràs said Saudi Arabia’s Vision-driven structural reforms position the Kingdom to benefit from the ongoing phase of fragmented integration, adding that the country’s strategic focus on logistics transformation and artificial intelligence constitutes a key engine for sustainable growth that extends beyond the volatility of global crises.

Antràs, the Robert G. Ory Professor of Economics at Harvard University, is one of the leading contemporary theorists of international trade. His research, which reshaped understanding of global value chains, focuses on how firms organize cross-border production and how regulation and technological change influence global trade flows and corporate decision-making.

He said conventional classifications of economies often obscure important structural differences, noting that the term emerging markets groups together countries with widely divergent industrial bases. Economies that depend heavily on manufacturing exports rely critically on market access and trade integration and therefore face stronger competitive pressures from Chinese exports that are increasingly shifting toward alternative markets.

Saudi Arabia, by contrast, exports extensively while facing limited direct competition from China in its primary export commodity, a situation that creates a strategic opportunity. The current environment allows the Kingdom to obtain imports from China at lower cost and access a broader range of goods that previously flowed largely toward the United States market.

Addressing how emerging economies should respond to dumping pressures and rising competition, Antràs said countries should minimize protectionist tendencies and instead position themselves as committed participants in the multilateral trading system, allowing foreign producers to access domestic markets while encouraging domestic firms to expand internationally.

He noted that although Chinese dumping presents concerns for countries with manufacturing sectors that compete directly with Chinese production, the risk is lower for Saudi Arabia because it does not maintain a large manufacturing base that overlaps directly with Chinese exports. Lower-cost imports could benefit Saudi consumers, while targeted policy tools such as credit programs, subsidies, and support for firms seeking to redesign and upgrade business models represent more effective responses than broad protectionist measures.

Globalization has not ended

Antràs said globalization continues but through more complex structures, with trade agreements increasingly negotiated through diverse arrangements rather than relying primarily on multilateral negotiations. Trade deals will continue to be concluded, but they are likely to become more complex, with uncertainty remaining a defining feature of the global trading environment.

Interest rates and artificial intelligence

According to Antràs, high global interest rates, combined with the additional risk premiums faced by emerging markets, are constraining investment, particularly in sectors that require export financing, capital expenditure, and continuous quality upgrading.

However, he noted that elevated interest rates partly reflect expectations of stronger long-term growth driven by artificial intelligence and broader technological transformation.

He also said if those growth expectations materialize, productivity gains could enable small and medium-sized enterprises to forecast demand more accurately and identify previously untapped markets, partially offsetting the negative effects of higher borrowing costs.

Employment concerns and the role of government

The Harvard professor warned that labor markets face a dual challenge stemming from intensified Chinese export competition and accelerating job automation driven by artificial intelligence, developments that could lead to significant disruptions, particularly among younger workers. He said governments must adopt proactive strategies requiring substantial fiscal resources to mitigate near-term labor-market shocks.

According to Antràs, productivity growth remains the central condition for success: if new technologies deliver the anticipated productivity gains, governments will gain the fiscal space needed to compensate affected groups and retrain the workforce, achieving a balance between addressing short-term disruptions and investing in long-term strategic gains.