Hyundai Engineering & Construction has signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia’s state oil company Aramco to build a $5 billion petrochemical plant in the east of the Middle Eastern country, the Korea’s Land Ministry said Sunday.
This is the largest order a domestic company has ever won from Saudi Arabia for plant construction and part of Amiral project, a future, world-scale petrochemical complex co-developed and operated by Aramco and France’s TotalEnergies.
It aims to establish a facility to manufacture basic petrochemical products, such as ethylene, in Saudi’s eastern provincial city of Jubail, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
This raises Korea’s total overseas orders in the sector to more than $13.7 billion, surpassing last year’s entire order of $12 billion.
President Yoon Suk Yeol hailed the Amiral project, saying it will serve to lay the solid foundation for the co-prosperity of the two countries and improve their bilateral economic relationship, according to presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon.
The presidential office said the project is an additional achievement from the 40 trillion won ($30 billion) worth of memorandums of understanding formed between Korea and Saudi Arabia last November.
Land Minister Won Hee-ryong attended the signing ceremony in Saudi Arabia on Saturday with Aramco President and CEO Amin H. Nasser and TotalEnergies Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné, vowing to spare no efforts in giving support for large infrastructure projects in the Middle East.
Related: Aramco and TotalEnergies award contracts for $11 billion Amiral project
In another statement, Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd. (“HDEC”) announced that it has been awarded contracts for two EPC packages related to a petrochemical expansion at the SATORP refinery in Jubail, Saudi Arabia.
Package 1 (Mixed Feed Cracker and Refinery Off Gases) involves installing a Mixed Feed Cracker (MFC) to produce an additional 1,650 KTA (kilo tons per annum) of ethylene and related industrial gases. Package 4 (Utilities, Flares & Interconnecting) relates to installation of facilities that supply utilities such as electricity and water to plants, and functions as interconnecting systems that support main packages within the facilities.
The project is located at Jubail Industrial City, which is about 70 kilometers northeast of Dammam. Once completed, the new petrochemical complex will be one of the largest downstream facilities in Saudi Arabia.
HDEC will execute detailed design, procurement, construction, commissioning and start-up activities on a lump-sum turn-key basis with a contract value of around $5 billion.
HDEC has proven its capabilities having previously successfully completed projects in Saudi Arabia, including facilities at Khursaniyah Gas Plant and Uthmaniyah Gas Plant.
Award of these new EPC contracts demonstrates the competitiveness of HDEC’s technology and client confidence, helping it maintain a leading position in the Middle East construction market.
HDEC first set foot in Saudi Arabia in 1975 and subsequently struck a historic deal for the industrial port in Jubail, on the coast of the Arabian Gulf. It has since built its presence in the kingdom, executing over 160 projects with a combined value of $18.3 billion.
Currently, HDEC is executing 13 projects worth $4.87 billion in Saudi Arabia, including Package 6 & 12 of the Marjan Oil Field Development Program, Jafurah Package 2, and a number of Transmission Lines and Substation Projects. HDEC is recognized for its outstanding construction and technological prowess by its clients.
