Kuwait responds to growing international demand with largest refinery in Mideast
ABU DHABI — Kuwait has pledged to build a fourth oil refinery at a time when international demand from China, India and Russia in increasing and the United States continues to refrain from further developing its own enormous continental oil resources.
The refinery was expected to be the largest in
the Middle East, with a capacity of 615,000 barrels of oil per day.
Acting Kuwaiti Oil Minister Mohammad Al Elaim said the sheikdom was
proceeding with a tender for the refinery, meant to cost up to $12 billion,
double the estimate in 2006.
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"The tender for the project has already been announced and the process
leading to deciding which bids were accepted has already started," Al Elaim
told an energy conference in the Saudi capital of Riyad.
Officials said the refinery project could be delayed by shortages in
labor and material. Kuwait has been operating three refineries with a total
capacity of 930,000 barrels a day.
