$10bn Ruwais refinery extension operational by new year

The $10 billion extension of Ruwais refinery will be fully operational by the beginning of next year, which is part of plans to diversify the economy away from energy, an official at state-run refiner Takreer said.

Takreer has already started commissioning the new facility, which will nearly double the refinery’s capacity from the current 415,000 barrels-per-day and will process Abu Dhabi’s Murban crude oil grade.

Takreer signed contracts worth US$9.6bn in March 2010 with SK Engineering, Samsung and Daewoo to increase the Ruwais facility’s daily output. The expansion of the plant, located some 240 kilometres west of Abu Dhabi city, was originally slated for completion by the end of 2013.

“Refinery expansion supports Abu Dhabi’s plans toward diversifying its economy by investing in downstream capacity,” said, said Fareed al-Jaberi, vice president of supply division at Takreer at MEED’s Abu Dhabi Conference.

“There is growth in demand and we are committed to meeting the additional demand requirements. We are going to export very high quality refined products, which is another step towards meeting environmental specifications.”

dalsaadi@thenational.ae

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