US services firm KBR this week announced that it has been awarded a contract to support Saudi Aramco’s sustainable energy production efforts in the Kingdom. In a press release, KBR said that the collaboration with Saudi Aramco is part of the Master Expansion Programme (MEP), which focuses on enhancing gas handling capabilities at key regional sites to meet the Kingdom’s energy needs.

The contract, which runs until 2028, will see KBR aid Aramco in increasing and maintaining maximum sustainable capacity at the Shaybah field’s four gas-oil separation plants (GOSPs). This includes improvements to power plants and well injection facilities, which are vital for Saudi Arabia’s energy future.

KBR said that the project emphasises sustainability by incorporating carbon-free energy solutions, carbon capture and gas reinjection to minimise emissions.

By optimising current equipment and GOSP plot space, as well as assessing the feasibility of a new greenfield facility, the initiative supports Saudi Aramco’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2060, thereby enhancing resource efficiency.

The MEP is one of several nationwide maximisation projects Aramco is undertaking concurrently, alongside the various crude increment programmes designed to raise maximum sustainable oil production capacity (MSC) at its giant and supergiant oil assets and the expansion of the Master Gas System (MGS).

While the MSC expansion was formally put on hold early last year, in June, Aramco awarded various contracts for the third MGS expansion phase (MGS-3). The MGS has a total current capacity of 9.6bn cubic feet (272mn cubic metres) per day following expansions in 2017 and 2018.

MGS-3 was due to be completed in 2019, taking total capacity to 12.5 bcf (354 mcm) per day through an additional 1,600 km of pipelines to increase gas supplies to the Red Sea coast. However, articles on the Aramco website in October 2020 said that the “next phase” remained under construction, noting the addition of 821 km of new pipelines, just over half the amount predicted when it released its 2017 annual report.

MGS’s trunk lines have a total length of 2,630 km, with branch lines adding another 1,340 km. The expansion is expected to be completed by the end of May 2027, with further projects seen taking capacity to 16.1 bcf (456 mcm) per day.