Saudi Aramco intends to “expand and intensify” cooperation with China in research in areas including hydrogen and ammonia production from natural gas, according to CEO Amin Nasser.
Aramco is looking to work with China on blue hydrogen and ammonia, synthetic fuels and the use and storage of carbon capture, Nasser said at the China Development Forum in Beijing. “All of this is essential to achieving our long-term, low-carbon ambitions,” he said.
Most oil is also sized for possible investment in Chinese projects, despite spending constraints arising from a period of low oil prices due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We see opportunities for further investment in integrated downstream projects to help meet China’s heavy transportation and chemical needs, as well as lubricants and non-metallic materials,” Nasser said.
Oil companies have reported global losses or declining profits for 2020, as low demand due to the coronavirus pandemic has led to falling prices and forced producers to shut down production. Aramco, the largest manufacturer in the world, was no different, reporting a 44% drop in profit on Sunday and further cuts in investment. However, some advanced or strategic projects are moving forward.
Internally, the Jazan refinery is “up to date,” Nasser told reporters in a separate conference call to discuss earnings on Sunday. The planned 400,000 barrel per day crude processing plant on the southern coast of the Saudi Red Sea has been established starts running at about half capacity after taking crude in the first quarter of this year, Aramco said in August.
Nasser did not provide updates on the plant’s program or capacity, which is meant to boost employment in remote and less affluent regions along Saudi Arabia’s border with Yemen.
– With the assistance of Anthony Di Paola, Matthew Martin and Lin Zhu
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