Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s largest energy companies, has awarded a joint venture formed by the Spanish company Técnicas Reunidas and the Chinese Sinopec Engineering Group the development of new Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) fractionation facilities in Saudi Arabia.

The works will be developed on the basis of two EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contracts for the execution of Riyas NGL Fractionation Trains (Package 1) and Riyas NGL Common Facilities (Package 2), which includes utilities, storage and export facilities.

Total investment arising from these two contracts amounts to more than 3.3 billion USD.

Since the joint venture is 65% owned by Técnicas Reunidas and 35% by Sinopec Engineering Group, the Spanish company is entitled to more than 2.15 billion USD of this total amount.

Function of the new facilities

The primary objective of the project is to enable the fractionation of NGLs, thus producing ethane, propane, butane and pentane.

Scope of the contracts

The new facilities to be developed by Técnicas Reunidas and Sinopec Engineering Group will fractionate 510 thousand barrels per day (MBD) of NGLs. The two trains of the Package 1 will process 255 MBD each, and will include fractionation, treatment, dehydration and refrigeration units. The common facilities of Package 2 will provide feed and product surge storage, chemicals storage and utilities including, although not limited to, steam and condensate recovery systems, utility water, plant, instrument air and nitrogen systems, machinery cooling water, drainage and flare systems. The expected duration of the project is about 46 months for Package 1 and about 41 months for Package 2, with a total maximum level of 575 engineers, of which more than 70% will be from Técnicas Reunidas.