Page 10 - AfrOil Week 07 2022

AfrOil POLICY AfrOil

Additionally, the Italian energy services contrac- contract under a ruling issued in December
tor reported that it had incurred a fine of around 2020.
€192mn as a result of the guilty verdict. It said it The Algerian court ruling is coming just a few
intended to book those costs on its accounts at short weeks after Saipem’s announcement in late
the end of Fiscal Year 2021 but would not pay January that it had sustained losses equivalent to
the fine immediately, since it intended to file an nearly one third of its total equity in 2021.
appeal with the aim of securing the suspension That news pulled the energy services con-
of the verdict and the fine. (Instead, the funds tractor’s share and bond prices down signifi-
will be set aside in case they are needed later, cantly, and the independent Italian investment
Reuters noted.) bank Equita said in a research note on February
The company went on to say that it had not 15 that the GNL3 Arzew verdict made further
yet been notified of the reasoning underlying losses likely.
the court’s decision. It also stressed that it had “We believe the conviction can expand the
been fully acquitted in the Italian court system of [2021] net operating loss... to €2.3-2.4bn,” the
corruption charges related to the GNL3 Arzew note said. ™

PROJECTS & COMPANIES
Aramco Trading Co. signs supply and

offtake deal for Egypt’s Red Sea project

EGYPT SAUDI Arabia’s Aramco Trading Co. (ATC) this Petroleum & Mineral Resources (MOPMR) in
week signed a non-binding deal to supply crude early 2021, the complex will process just over
oil to a new refining and petrochemicals facil- 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude to produce
ity in Egypt with a provision for the offtake of 2.7mn tonnes per year (tpy) of petrochemicals
refined products and petrochemicals. and 1.2mn tpy of petroleum products and is
The local Red Sea National Petrochemicals scheduled to be completed by the end of 2024.
Co. (Red Sea) began work on a $7.5bn facility This week’s deal will see ATC supply 100,000
at the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) bpd of Arabian crude to the facility, suggesting
in Ain Sokhna in June last year. According to that the unit’s processing capacity may be higher
documents published by Egypt’s Ministry of than previously envisaged.

Ain Sokhna is at the southern end of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (Photo: SCZone.eg)

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 07 16•February•2022