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Middle East

Honeywell UOP signs agreement for $1.6-B Jordanian refinery expansion

AMMAN, Jordan – Honeywell UOP announced that it has signed an agreement with the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company (JPRC) to facilitate a $1.6 B expansion of its refinery in Zarqa, Jordan. This expansion will increase the capacity of the facility to 120,000 bpd and will allow JPRC to upgrade the quality of its product to meet Euro V emissions specifications.

India's top refiner in early talks with Aramco for downstream project

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -- India's top refiner said it is in initial talks with Saudi Aramco on downstream investments, including a mega project on its west coast, that could help the OPEC member lock-in customers amid an oil supply glut.

Saudi energy minister says may extend oil output cuts beyond 2017

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -- Saudi Arabia's energy minister Khalid Al-Falih said on Monday that oil markets were rebalancing after years of oversupply, but that he still expected an OPEC-led deal to cut output during the first half of the year to be extended to all of 2017.

Iraq loading first crude oil cargo for Egypt under new deal

BAGHDAD (Reuters) -- Iraq's oil ministry said on Thursday it had started loading a tanker with 2 MMbbl of crude oil bound for Egypt, marking the first shipment under a bilateral agreement.

Iraq calls for bids for new oil refinery in Basra

BAGHDAD (Reuters) -- Iraqi's oil ministry on Thursday asked foreign companies and investors to bid for a project to build and operate a 300,000-bpd export-oriented refinery in Fao, near the southern city of Basra.

TechnipFMC awarded EPC contract for sulfate reduction plant in Abu Dhabi

LONDON, PARIS, HOUSTON — TechnipFMC has been awarded by Zakum Development Company an Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for a sulfate reduction plant on West Island located offshore Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Saudi Aramco to dilute stake in Dow JV via IPO

ABU DHABI (Reuters) -- National oil firm Saudi Aramco plans to cut its stake in Sadara Chemical Co, a joint venture with US company Dow Chemical, via an initial public offer of shares, Sadara chief executive Ziad al-Labban said on Wednesday.

Iraq's fuel oil exports soar despite OPEC supply cut

DUBAI (Reuters) -- Iraqi fuel oil exports have soared since January despite a reduction in the country's crude production in line with OPEC supply cuts, industry sources said, in what could be a way to boost output of refined products and maintain oil revenues.

India cuts oil import plans from Iran by a quarter over gas field row

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -- India plans to order about a quarter less Iranian crude oil than it bought last year, people familiar with the matter said, as state refiners cut term purchase deals over a row between New Delhi and Tehran on development of a natural gas field.

Equipment critical analysis: The need for an effective maintenance program

Toyo Engineering Canada Ltd.: Zardynezhad, S.

Oil refineries and large petrochemical plants contain thousands of pieces of process and utilities equipment that are subject to wear, erosion, deterioration, aging, etc., resulting in increasing breakdowns and outages. Imagine being a maintenance engineer and receiving 50 work orders during an overhaul with a limited budget, time, labor, spare parts, tools, machines, etc. How does that engineer prioritize the work?