Saudi Aramco awards drilling contract to China Harbour Engineering

State oil giant Saudi Aramco on Monday awarded a contract to build two drilling islands to China Harbour Engineering Arabia.

The deal comes under a programme to increase oil production at the Al-Barri oilfield from 250,000 barrels a day to 500,000 by early 2023, according to Saudi Press Agency.

The wider project includes a new oil and gas screening plant on Abu Ali Island and additional gas treatment facilities at the Kharsaniyah Gas Plant to process 40,000 barrels of hydrocarbons and associated condensates.

China Harbour will build two offshore drilling islands on the northern and southern sides of King Fahd Industrial Port in Jubail to support production.

The sites will span an area of 616,553sqm and 263,855sqm respectively.

Earlier this month, Aramco also awarded an integrated services contract for its Marjan oilfield, the first of three major offshore expansions in Saudi Arabia, to Baker Hughes.

Read: Saudi Aramco awards services contract for its Marjan offshore oilfield

Aramco is currently pursuing a deal to acquire up to 70 per cent of petrochemical firm SABIC from the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund.

Reuters reported earlier this week that the PIF had appointed Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Michael Klein as advisers.

Read: Saudi’s PIF selects Goldman Sachs, BofAML as advisers on SABIC sale