KUWAIT: The Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) announced on Sunday the successful and safe completion of the operation of the third and final units of the Al-Zour refinery in the Al-Zour petroleum complex, thus achieving a historic achievement added to its track record of success. KIPIC said in a press release that it has achieved one of the most important goals of the strategy of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and its companies in reaching the maximum refining capacity, which amounts to 615,000 barrels per day.
It pointed out that the operation of the Al-Zour refinery is a completion of the implementation of one of the most important axes of the development program of the government of Kuwait, as the project will contribute to enhancing the production capacities of the oil and gas sector in the country, provide more opportunities for Kuwaiti citizens, and support the national economy.
It explained that the refinery represents a milestone in the company’s journey, which has undergone unprecedented experience in implementing this huge project at the local and global levels. The Al-Zour refinery is the largest refining facility in the world to be built in one phase and ranked seventh globally in the list of the 10 largest oil refineries in the world by the global refining survey report.
The statement quoted Walid Al-Bader, CEO of the company, as saying, "We dedicate this great national achievement to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and the noble Kuwaiti people. He stated that the completion of the third refinery comes as the culmination of years of hard work by all employees of the company and is a strategic achievement for Kuwait and the oil sector in particular due to the great and pivotal role assigned to it in shaping the future of Kuwait’s oil industry.
The operation of the third refinery was carried out successfully and safely with national assistance and in accordance with the plan. Successes have been achieved in supplying low-sulfur fuel oil to the power plants of the Ministry of Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy in the south and north of the country. KIPIC is focused on preserving the environment of Kuwait, reducing the percentage of sulfur emissions, and raising air quality.
Al-Bader stressed that the Al-Zour refinery project is one of the mega projects implemented globally and was implemented through five packages by alliances of global contractors. For his part, Ali Al-Ajmi, executive vice president of operations of Al-Zour refinery, said that Al-Zour refinery has achieved a large and successive set of successes.
It started commercial operation of the first refinery in November 2022 and a number of commercial shipments of kerosene, petrochemical naphtha, high-quality jet fuel, as well as low-sulfur fuel oil. Very low-sulfur diesel has been exported to world markets. Al-Ajmi praised all the great efforts made by all the work teams at the Al-Zour refinery to achieve this historic achievement, stressing that it is the fruit of the efforts of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and its associates, as well as the solidarity of all employees in KIPIC. — KUNA