en.Wedoany.com Reported - Multiple engineering contractors have submitted bids to Saudi Aramco for the Abqaiq-Ras Tanura (GART) gas pipeline network replacement project. The project aims to construct new pipelines to replace aging ones, ensuring a stable fuel gas supply to the Ras Tanura Refinery and accommodating growing gas demand.
The Abqaiq-Ras Tanura gas pipeline network is a critical energy corridor in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. It transports associated gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) from the Abqaiq crude oil processing center northward to the Ras Tanura Refinery, providing core gas supply for plant operations.
The core scope of this tender is the replacement of the GART-22 gas pipeline, which connects the Ju'aymah export terminal on the Gulf coast of the Eastern Province to the Ras Tanura Refinery. The construction scope includes building a new 24-inch pipeline system and simultaneously replacing the aging GART-22 pipeline and the decommissioned GART-24 pipeline. The total length of the new pipeline is 18 km, running from Ju'aymah to the Ras Tanura terminal. In addition to the main pipeline laying, the project also includes complete ancillary facilities such as pig launchers and receivers, pressure control valves, motor-operated valves, and gas detection and sampling systems, to upgrade the pipeline network and enhance gas transmission safety and stability.
Saudi Aramco officially issued the tender notice for this project in May 2026, initially setting June 30 as the bid submission deadline. Subsequently, the company twice postponed the deadline in response to market demand, first to July 10 and finally to July 12 as the final submission date. According to industry sources, all bidding contractors submitted their proposals before the deadline.
Companies participating in this project bid include Chinese, Saudi, and various international engineering firms. Major bidders include Arabian ACE Pipeline Company, United Group Contracting Company, Arabian Gas Services Company, Saudi Max Streicher Company, National Infrastructure Company, Saad Ali Al-Alesa Group, SISIM Company, Sinopec Engineering (Saudi Arabia) Company, and Tekton Engineering Construction Company. Sinopec Engineering (Saudi Arabia) Company, a Chinese energy engineering firm, participated in this bid.
The Ras Tanura Refinery is one of the oldest and largest crude oil refining facilities in Saudi Arabia, with comprehensive capacity and ancillary facilities ranking among the top in the country. The refinery has a crude oil refining capacity of 550,000 barrels per day. Key ancillary facilities include a natural gas liquids processing unit with a capacity of 305,000 barrels per day and a crude oil stabilization unit with a capacity of 960,000 barrels per day; combined heat and power units with a summer generation capacity of 145 MW and winter capacity of 158 MW, and a steam system with a comprehensive capacity of 6.217 billion pounds per hour. In terms of storage, the facility has 75 crude oil and product tanks with a total storage capacity of 5.8 million barrels. Regarding refining units, the refinery has a crude distillation unit with a capacity of 325,000 barrels per day, a condensate distillation unit with a capacity of 225,000 barrels per day, a hydrocracking unit with a capacity of 50,000 barrels per day, and a catalytic reforming capacity of 107,000 barrels per day. The Ras Tanura Refinery is the only refinery under Saudi Aramco equipped with a visbreaking unit, which has a capacity of 60,000 barrels per day, effectively reducing residual oil output from crude distillation and increasing yields of high-value middle distillates, heating oil, and diesel.
The refinery produces 17,000 barrels of asphalt per day, the highest output among Saudi refineries. The plant's feedstock primarily comes from the Abqaiq, Safaniya, and Manifa oil fields, with crude oil transported via pipeline or vessel. For product outbound logistics, the vast majority of refined products are sent to the Dhahran Bulk Plant to supply the Saudi domestic market, while the remainder is exported through the nearby Ras Tanura shipping terminal.
