RIL sees Saudi dreams in Jizan oil refinery
Reliance Industries (RIL) has set its sights on acquiring a majority stake in Jizan oil refinery in the Saudi Kingdom.
By Piyush Pandey, TNN |
NEW DELHI: Reliance Industries (RIL) has set its sights on acquiring a majority stake in Jizan oil refinery in the Saudi Kingdom. Jizan oil refinery, with a capacity of processing up to 4,00,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), will be the first refinery in Saudi Arabia to be wholly owned and operated by the private sector. RIL has been looking for an entry in the hydrocarbon-rich Kingdom for quite some time, but without much success.
Confirming the move, a source close to the development told ET: ���We are interested in the Jizan refinery project. Saudi Aramco is also likely to participate. The government is likely to call for an expression of interest (EoI) in a couple of months.���
However, he refused to divulge the investments in the project. A Reliance spokesperson declined to comment. Even a mail sent to Reliance did not evoke any response.
RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani last year announced investments to the tune of $24 billion in the Gulf region in various energy projects. Malaysia���s state-owned oil firm, Petronas, is also believed to be in the race for this project.
Asked why the company is not successful in executing big-ticket acquisitions, Atul Chandra, president of international operations, Reliance, said: ���We need to justify such investments to our shareholders. We are looking for acquisitions in all parts of the world.���
If Jizan refinery project goes ahead, the scheme would be the third such JV in the Kingdom. This follows the Petro-Rabigh and Ras Tanura complexes, which Saudi Aramco is developing with Japan���s Sumitomo Chemical Company and US��� Dow Chemical Company, respectively.
Confirming the move, a source close to the development told ET: ���We are interested in the Jizan refinery project. Saudi Aramco is also likely to participate. The government is likely to call for an expression of interest (EoI) in a couple of months.���
However, he refused to divulge the investments in the project. A Reliance spokesperson declined to comment. Even a mail sent to Reliance did not evoke any response.
RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani last year announced investments to the tune of $24 billion in the Gulf region in various energy projects. Malaysia���s state-owned oil firm, Petronas, is also believed to be in the race for this project.
Asked why the company is not successful in executing big-ticket acquisitions, Atul Chandra, president of international operations, Reliance, said: ���We need to justify such investments to our shareholders. We are looking for acquisitions in all parts of the world.���
If Jizan refinery project goes ahead, the scheme would be the third such JV in the Kingdom. This follows the Petro-Rabigh and Ras Tanura complexes, which Saudi Aramco is developing with Japan���s Sumitomo Chemical Company and US��� Dow Chemical Company, respectively.
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