Saudi Gazette report

DAMMAM — Minister of Energy Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Salman said Saudi Arabia would rely fully on gas and renewable energy, represented by solar energy and wind, in a major bid to save electricity power in future. He made the remarks while launching the laboratory complex in Dammam on Monday.

“Generating electric energy by using gas and renewable energy will help save huge quantities of crude oil, which are sold and burned locally at low prices, and thus enabling the Kingdom to export them as a new source of income. Moreover, reducing the cost of energy production enhances competitiveness of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states to export the surplus quantity of electricity,” he said.

The minister said Al-Jafourah field represents a major component of the gas program, and the field enhances the ministry’s commitment to the concept of enhancing the local content and providing opportunities and creating more jobs.

Addressing the Energy Pioneers Forum 2020 organized by the Eastern Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Prince Abdul Aziz emphasized that Al-Jafourah gas field will enhance the Kingdom’s drive to use gas in generating electricity.

“The local content program emphasizes provision of maximum economic benefit by providing the needs of the country from within, which will enhance the economic and political security of the Kingdom through self-sufficiency.”

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority Dr. Ghassan Al-Shibl and a number of officials and specialists attended the forum held at the chamber headquarters in Dammam.

He said the ministry is determined to communicate with the private sector to achieve the goal of maximizing local content, indicating that the ministry will make available better environment for large, medium, small and emerging companies to take advantage of the opportunities available in the energy sector.

He said the Jafourah field will start production in the year 2023, and it will be the largest plant in the Kingdom to convert power stations that currently depend on raw and petroleum products.

Al-Jafourah basin, 170 km in length and 100 km in width, is the Kingdom’s largest non-conventional and non-associate gas field.