Page 12 - MEOG Week 02 2023

MEOG TENDERS MEOG

KOC continues contracting

as more delay claims emerge

KUWAIT KUWAIT’S state-owned upstream operator The deal was two engineering deals appor-
last week awarded another major contract as tioned by KOC within a matter of days and fol-
new reports emerged about further delays to an lowed the award to Australian firm Worley of a
already-overdue project. five-year FEED contract to improve efficiency
French firm Technip Energies was picked by across its facilities.
Kuwait Oil Co. (KOC) for a five-year framework According to a statement from Worley, it was
agreement that covers project management hired to provide Kuwait Oil Co. (KOC) with
consultancy (PMC), front-end engineering and “traditional services and sustainability related
design (FEED) and associated services for major services to develop new solar, power and water
projects under development in the Gulf state. projects that will further improve efficiency and
A statement by Technip Energies did not increase the capacity of KOC’s facilities.” The
specify the size of the contract, describing it only timing of the two awards suggests that while the
as ‘large, which the company defines as €250- language of the Worley deal is vague, its con-
€500mn ($266-$532mn). tract may be another renewal given that it won
It marks the renewal of a five-year framework a similar five-year deal to Technip – alongside
first awarded in 2014. That deal entailed the pro- US-based Fluor – in 2014.
vision of support across the government firm’s
long project slate of upgrades to existing facilities Pipeline delay
and the development of new ones, most impor- Just as similar deals were announced in consec-
tantly the estimated $4.2bn Lower Fars heavy oil utive weeks, similar claims of delays at Kuwaiti
project, which aims to add 270,000 barrels per projects emerged in the local press in the last
day (bpd) of production by 2023. few days. After documents from the firm’s par-
KOC typically retains a trio of heavyweight ent Kuwait Petroleum Corp. (KPC) were leaked
international engineering companies on similar to media outlets suggesting the firm’s financial
five-year, wide-ranging mandates – offsetting to position may challenge project investments,
a degree the political impossibility of partner- the local Alanba quoted sources as saying that
ships for specific projects such as Lower Fars a major pipeline project has yet to be completed,
with international oil companies (IOCs). At that nearly six years after it was awarded.
stage (then) Technip replaced UK-based Amec. KOC awarded a contract for the development
Technip valued its award at $400mn and said of a pipeline feeding the Al-Zour refinery in 2017
it covered the provision of “project management, and this was expected to be completed by 2020.
feasibility studies, front-end design, project con- However, despite KOC having imposed a fine on
trols, planning, engineering, procurement, con- the contractor, the report said that the Central
struction management services, as well as the Agency for Public Tenders (CAPT) “told KOC
training of KOC project staff.” that it still does not see any clear vision for the
Commenting on last week’s renewal, Charles project completion although KOC reported that
Cessot, SVP of Technip Energies’ T.EN X busi- the project would be finished on May 22, 2022.”
ness, said: “We are delighted by the continued The KWD257mn ($848mn) contract is
confidence shown by KOC with this award to understood to have been held up by pipe cor-
support them on their major developments. This rosion and “other problems”, thereby delaying
award reinforces the strong and lasting relation- KPC downstream affiliate Kuwait Integrated
ship we have built with KOC and reaffirms our Petrochemical Industries Co. (KIPIC) from
outstanding consultancy delivery as well as our bringing its $16bn, 615,000-bpd refinery up to
long-standing presence in Kuwait.” full capacity.™

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 02 11•January•2023