Aramco to build new industrial city

AL KHOBAR: Saudi Aramco is considering whether to build a new industrial city in the south of the Al Ahsa district in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, as authorities seek to expand the kingdom’s industrial base, industry sources said.

International engineering companies have already bid for engineering work, the sources added, declining to give details. Saudi Aramco declined to comment.

Bapco achieves safety milestone

MANAMA: Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) has reported the achievement of a major safety and reliability milestone, with the Refinery Reliability Clock reaching 90 days without a reset.

'This milestone could have only been achieved with the great team effort of all employees and contractors,' Bapco deputy CEO for refining and marketing, and chairman of EHS committee Ebrahim Talib said.

Oman explores rooftop solar power

MUSCAT: Photovoltaic (PV) systems installed on top residential buildings across Oman could offer an estimated 1.4 GW of solar energy capacity, a report by Oman’s Public Authority for Electricity and Water said.

Rooftop PV capacity in Muscat alone is estimated at 450 MW, the Oman Observer report added.

Egypt, Aramco sign $1.4bn deal

CAIRO: Egypt agreed a three-month oil products deal worth $1.4 billion with Saudi Arabia’s state-owned Aramco to begin in September, the oil minister told Reuters.

The deal stipulates that Egypt pay Aramco within a year, Sherif Ismail said.

The deal includes 500,000 tonnes of diesel fuel, 220,000 tonnes of heating oil and 150,000 tonnes of gasoline per month, Ismail said.

Total stops coal production

PARIS: French oil major Total confirmed that it had stopped all production of coal after the South African government approved the sale of its coal mining operations there.

'We cannot claim to be providing solutions to climate change while continuing to produce or market coal, the fossil fuel that emits more greenhouse gas than any other,' Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne said.