Sabriya,Kuwait on Thursday opened a new reception center at Sabriya oil fields as part of efforts to encourage the Gulf states to increase oil production to four million barrels per day in 2020. Oil Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah al-Sabah inaugurated the center’s third largest oil fields near Kuwait’s northern border with Iraq. The facility was built by South Korean SK Engineering and Construction Co.. at a cost of 626.7 million dollars, can handle 165 000 barrels of crude per day and 85 million cubic feet of gas.
“The center is one of the facilities that contribute to the strategic direction in 2020,” said Sami al-Rasheed, chairman of the Kuwait Oil Co.., The state-owned company responsible for production. Reception center to the physical separation of crude oil, natural gas, water and other impurities before pumping clean oil, either for export or for gas and oil refineries to power plants.
President SK Choi Kwang-Chul said the project was completed six months ahead of schedule and went online a month ago. Reception center is already scheduled to be completed in September. Original center, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the border with Iraq, have been damaged during the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 by Saddam Hussein’s forces. Sheikh Ahmad said the center and a number of other projects are part of a long-term strategy of OPEC member Kuwait to increase production capacity to four million barrels per day.
“Currently, we are able to produce three million barrels per day,” the minister told reporters after the opening ceremony, but declined to say whether this is sustainable for a long time. Kuwait, OPEC’s fourth largest exporter, said that occupy 10 percent of global crude reserves. It had been pumping about 2.2 million barrels per day. (AFP)
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