RIYADH: Saudi energy giant Aramco has awarded a $7.7 billion contract for a major expansion of its Fadhili Gas Plant in the Eastern Province. The company announced in a statement that SAMSUNG Engineering Co, GS Engineering & Construction Corp, and Nesma & Partners were the winners of the increment project contract for the gas plant. The firm noted that the initiative is expected to increase the plant’s processing capacity from 2.5 billion standard cubic feet per day to up to 4 billion. It added that this additional 1.5 bscfd of processing capacity is expected to contribute to the company’s strategy of raising gas production by more than 60 percent by 2030 compared to 2021 levels. “The award of these contracts reflects Aramco’s goal to increase supplies of natural gas, help efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and free up more crude oil for value-added refining and export,” said Wail Al-Jaafari, Aramco executive vice president of technical services. He added that the firm, along with international companies, are progressing toward their goal of enhancing gas production. The Fadhili Gas Plant expansion, which is expected to be completed by November 2027, is also expected to add an additional 2,300 metric tonnes per day to sulphur production. “The expansion also supports our ambitions to develop a lower-carbon hydrogen business, while associated liquids from gas are an important feedstock for the petrochemical,” Al-Jaafari said. According to the company’s website, Fadhili is the first plant to treat non-associated gas from both onshore and offshore fields, and the first Aramco plant designed from the start to use Tail Gas Treatment technology, enabling it to achieve a sulfur recovery rate of over 99.9 percent. The facility reached its design gas processing capacity of 2.5 bscfd in 2021 and, as part of the company’s Master Gas System, will help to meet Saudi Arabia’s growing demand for energy. “This plant will not only drive economic growth, it is enabling industrial development and also reducing emissions in the process,” Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said. The company has recently announced a net income of $121.3 billion in its 2023 financial results, marking the second-highest in its history.