The expansion of Saudi Arabia’s Khurais oilfield is likely to be delayed from its originally planned timeframe of 2017, it has been reported.
Consequently, the start-up date of the project is now unclear.
Plummeting global oil prices are being attributed for the delay, despite the absence of official comment on the development.
Saudi Aramco has, however, reportedly slowed “some projects, shelving less important ones, and asking for discounts on some contracts which it had awarded”, a report by Yahoo Maktoob stated.
“The project is important because of the associated gas that comes with the expansion of the oilfield … but Aramco has stretched the timeframe of the field,” a source said, choosing to remain anonymous.
“The picture will be much clearer in November or December.”
Contractors awarded jobs on the field have been asked to wait before finalising their contract.
Another source said this is an indicator that the project’s start-up could be pushed beyond 2018.
The Khurais expansion project is due to increase the field’s output by 300,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.5 million bpd, and allow it to produce 143 million standard cubic feet per day of associated gas and 34,000 bpd of natural gas liquids, the report added.
