MEED Middle East Economic Digest articles from June 2004

MEED Middle East Economic Digest archives from June 2004

Oil in a good cause.(Comment)
June 4, 2004... The oil wealth of the Middle East has always been something of a mixed blessing, luring both foreign investors and foreign armies to the region. Without oil, Iraq would arguably not be under the tenuous control of an occupying force today, nor...

On the record.(Seven Days)
June 4, 2004... "I sometimes say--I'm sure he doesn't mind my saying it--Mr Bremer [Paul Bremer, head of the Coalition Provisional Authority] is the dictator of Iraq. He has the money. He has the signature. Nothing happens without his agreement in this...

Looking back ...(Seven Days)(Calendar)
June 4, 2004... 5 June 1964 Cairo announces plans to launch its first satellite after the Soviet Union agrees to provide further funds to build a space research city in Egypt 2 June 1989 Saudi Arabia lobbies fellow OPEC members to scrap an...

Controversy greets new government: fresh violence greets cabinet announcement.(Iraq)
June 4, 2004... The make-up of Iraq's interim government was determined in late May, after much political wrangling between the interim governing council, the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the UN. Iraqi National Accord (INA) leader Iyad...

Poll provides Sharon Gaza plan boost.(Regional: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon)
June 4, 2004... Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's efforts to revive his Gaza pullout plan received a boost on 1 June after an opinion poll in a local newspaper revealed that a majority of Israelis back his initiative. The survey also revealed that 54 per...

Al-Khobar assailants killed in shoot-out.(Saudi Arabia)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Saudi security forces on 2 June killed two murder suspects linked to the 29 May attacks in Al-Khobar, according to the Interior Ministry. Saudi security forces were searching for three gunmen who attacked the residential compound in Al-Khobar...

Amnesty issues critical report: 27 May.(Amnesty International)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Human rights organisation Amnesty International releases its annual report, accusing Washington and President Bush in particular of pursuing policies "bankrupt of vision and bereft of principles". Amnesty reserves particular criticism for the...

Syria considers Brotherhood reconciliation: 27 May.(News Digest)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Syrian officials and Muslim Brotherhood leaders hold talks on reconciling the banned movement with authorities, representatives say.

Sudan peace deal signed: 27 May.(News Digest)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A peace deal is signed between the Islamic government and southern rebels, promising an end to the conflict that has killed 2 million people since 1983. The deal is signed in Naivasha, Kenya amid scenes of jubilation. US Secretary of State...

Blair denies US rift over Iraq: 27 May.(News Digest)(Tony Blair)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... UK Prime Minister Tony Blair denies a rift between London and Washington over whether the Iraqi government will be able to veto military operations by coalition forces after the handover of sovereignty on 30 June. Blair insists the two leaders...

Police fire on Beirut protestors: 27 May.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Three people are killed and 16 wounded when police open fire on protestors in Beirut. The CGTL union called the nationwide strike to protest against high petrol prices. Officials say the demonstrators were hit when protestors charged towards a...

New Majlis opens: 27 May.(News Digest)(Khatami)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The opening session of Iran's new conservative-dominated Majlis (parliament) is held. In a speech to the parliament, President Khatami says he hopes clashes with his government can be avoided over the coming year. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali...

Truce in Najaf: 28 May.(News Digest)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The US-led coalition in Iraq halts its offensive against radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in Najaf after he agrees to withdraw his fighters, on the condition that the US pulls its troops from the area and shelves a murder inquiry against...

Governor's death follows new Iran earthquake: 28 May.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Provincial governor Masoud Emami dies in a helicopter crash while assessing the damage caused by the previous day's earthquake in Qazvin province in northern Iran, which killed 25 people. Emami is killed alongside his deputy, his police chief...

Tripoli talks but can it walk? Last December, Tripoli announced it would dismantle its weapons of mass destruction programme, paving the way for its recent rapprochement with the West and opening up of its economy. In an exclusive interview with MEED, Libyan Prime Minister Shukri Ghanem discusses the reform programme.(Libya)(Cover Story)
June 4, 2004... Tripoli may want to play ball, but there is still a yin to its yang. Two months ago the Economy & Trade Ministry invited firms to discuss problems they had with the local business environment. However, what seemed as a perfect example of...

Gulf demand continues to drive desalination spending: GCC states are to double installed capacity over the next decade, while North Africa is emerging as one of the fastest growing markets for the technology.(Economic briefing: desalination markets)(Gulf Cooperation Council)
June 4, 2004... The installation of new desalination capacity will require worldwide expenditure of at least $95,000 million over the next decade, according to a recent report by London-based Global Water Intelligence (GWI). Unsurprisingly, the vast majority...

Satellite security for oil contractors: cyber solution suggested by CPA.(Telecoms & IT)(Coalition Provisional Authority)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) is planning to introduce a state-of-the-art security system for oil contractors which includes real-time satellite tracking of contractors' vehicles and a 'panic button' that will immediately inform the...

US to record Baathist atrocities.(Telecoms & IT)(US' Iraq Memory Foundation)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Pentagon is to award to the US' Iraq Memory Foundation a one-year contract to establish a record of atrocities committed during the Baathist rule. The contract requires the foundation to produce a multi-media archive of atrocities committed...

Washington plans nationwide payment system.(Banking & Finance)(computer-based nationwide payment system for the Central Bank of Iraq)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The US Treasury is seeking proposals from international firms for the installation and supply of a computer-based nationwide payment system for the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI). Firms have until 29 June to submit proposals for a real-time...

Costain homes in on Kurdistan government awards.(Construction)(Kurdistan Regional Government awarded contract to Costain Group PLC)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has awarded three contracts totalling about $28 million to the UK's Costain Group. The group is also expecting to sign in the coming weeks several other deals, giving it a significant foothold in the...

Two new power contracts.(Power)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The US Army has awarded design and build prime contracts worth a combined $200 million to Italy's Bertoli and IAP Worldwide Services of the US to provide electricity generators at sites across the country. The two one-year, indefinite...

KRG seeks technical advisers.(Power)(Kurdistan Regional Government)(Coalition Provisional Authority)(oil-for-food programme)
June 4, 2004... The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) is seeking consultants to advise the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on its oil-for-food programme projects, and to design future projects under the programme. The consultant is also required to...

MEED conferences: premier networking events.(Calendar)
June 4, 2004... Gulf Petrochemicals 8-9 June 2004, Bahrain Middle East Retail 15-16 June 2004, Dubai 2nd Middle East Capital Markets 21-22 September 2004, Dubai Major New Project Opportunities in Abu Dhabi 26-27 September 2004, Abu Dhabi MEED...

Contracts flow on Sohar pipeline: Saipem/CCC take main mixed-feedstock pipeline job; locals win PRT.(Oman)(Sohar mixed feedstock pipeline project, Consolidated Contractors International Co.)
June 4, 2004... A joint venture of Italy's Saipem and Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC) has been awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the estimated $200 million Sohar mixed feedstock pipeline...

Straddle plant back on the agenda.(Saudi Arabia)
June 4, 2004... The estimated $1,700 million programme to expand the kingdom's gas handling infrastructure has been brought back forward again by Saudi Aramco and is now expected to go for tender in the fourth quarter. The move came only two months after...

Commercial bids in for Agip pipeline.(Libya)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Commercial bids were submitted in late May for the contract to build a new $180 million oil pipeline between the El-Sharara field in block NC-115 and Melitah on the coast. Thirteen companies were invited to bid when the project was tendered in...

More Dolphin subcontract work let.(Qatar)(Kentz awarded Dolphin gas and compression plant project at Ras Laffan)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Qatar Kentz has been awarded the temporary site buildings package on the Dolphin gas and compression plant project at Ras Laffan. Worth an estimated $20 million, the contract is due to be completed in the first quarter of 2005. The subcontract...

New LNG shipping company formed.(Qatar)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A new liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping company is to be established at Ras Laffan to serve the needs of the rapidly expanding LNG industry. To be known as Qatar Gas Transportation Company, the firm will have a capital of QR 4,600 million...

Strong interest in gas pipeline.(Yemen)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... More than 25 companies responded by the 31 May deadline to a request for expressions of interest in a feasibility study contract looking at a proposed natural gas pipeline linking Marib to Aden and Hodaidah, The client, the World Bank in...

EPSA-4 gains further clarification.(Libya)(licensing round)(Petroleum industry)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... More details have been released on Tripoli's much-anticipated forthcoming licensing round--known as EPSA-4--which is expected to be launched in September. Eight blocks are on offer, including two offshore, in what National Oil Corporation (NOC)...

Cairo tenders new southern blocks.(Egypt)(Ganoub el-Wadi Petroleum Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... State-owned Ganoub el-Wadi Petroleum Company (Ganope) has released for tender five new exploration blocks in the south of the county two of which are located in the Western Desert, close to the border with Libya, and the remaining three...

Woodside approves Chinguetti development.(Mauritania)(Woodside Petroleum Ltd., Chinguetti offshore oil field)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Australia's Woodside Petroleum announced on 31 May a final investment decision for the first-phase development of its Chinguetti offshore oil field in production sharing contract area B, 90 kilometres west of Nouakchott. The $600 million...

Riding the rollercoaster.(Oil Prices)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... OPEC has announced plans to raise production quotas to 26 million barres a day (b/d), after a week in which US benchmark crude futures peaked at $42.25 a barrel following the terrorist attacks in Al-Khobar. The two-stage increase will include a...

Dow, PIC form new ventures: PIC to take stake in Dow's overseas assets.(Kuwait)(Dow Chemical Co., Petrochemical Industries Company KSC)
June 4, 2004... The local Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC) is preparing to take its first step into the European and North American markets with the announcement that it is setting up two new petrochemicals joint ventures with the US' Dow Chemical...

Sipco chooses LAB-only option.(Saudi Arabia)(Saudi Indo Petrochemical Company, linear alkyl benzene)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Saudi Indo Petrochemical Company (Sipco) has dropped plans to build a normal paraffin (n-paraffin)/linear alkyl benzene (LAB) plant at Yanbu in favour of pursuing a LAB facility only. The decision was taken as a result of the current high...

Joint venture wins MoE hotel package: Bu Haleeba/Alec take the 18-month contract.(UAE)(Bu Haleeba Contracting Company, South African Al-Jaber Grinaker LTA)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A joint venture of the local Bu Haleeba Contracting Company and the local/South African Al-Jaber Grinaker LTA (Alec) has received a letter of intent for the hotel package on the Mall of the Emirates (MoE) development in Dubai. Valued at $55...

More time for Burj Dubai as bidders are added to list.(UAE)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The bid closing date has been extended by three weeks to 4 July for the main package on the Burj Dubai tower project. About seven international groups were originally prequalified for the contract, but it is understood that several companies,...

Bidders gear up for Abu Dhabi landfill BOT.(UAE)(build-operate-transfer)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A small group of local and international companies is understood to be gearing up to bid for the contract to develop a new landfill, composting and incineration facility on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis to deal with all solid waste from...

CCC set for Capital Towers.(UAE)(Consolidated Contractors International Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC) received a letter of intent in early June for the main contract on the Capital Towers development in Dubai. Valued at AED 450 million ($122 million), the contract will involve...

Kuwaitis to develop DIFC.(UAE)(Dubai International Finance Centre)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A Kuwaiti joint venture of Global Investment House and Al-Mazaya Holdings Company signed an agreement on 30 May to develop a plot on the 44-hectare Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC). The joint venture is planning to invest AED 450...

Alba potline 5 contracts awarded.(Bahrain)(Aluminium Bahrain)(Arabian International Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Three more subcontracts have been awarded to local and regional companies on the Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) fifth potline expansion project. All are for work on the potline building itself. Jeddah-based Arabian International Company has been...

New control centre planned at US Navy base.(Bahrain)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is expecting to issue in late June a tender for an estimated $10 million contract to build a new control centre as part of a major expansion of the kingdom's US naval base. The contract involves the...

CCC signs up for Sheraton.(Egypt)(Consolidated Contractors International Company)(Sheraton Heliopolis)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The local/Kuwaiti Guff Egypt for Hotels & Tourism has officially awarded the contract to expand the Sheraton Heliopolis in Cairo to Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC), a month after the company entered into...

Marrakech-Agadir road link gets go-ahead.(Morocco)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... King Mohammed VI authorised on 1 June the construction of a new 240-kilometre highway between Marrakech and the southern coastal city of Agadir. The MD 6,200 million ($688 million) project will complete a 1,000-kilometre highway network from...

Omantel seeks new HQ consultant.(Oman)(Oman Telecommunications Company)(headquarter)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Applications for prequalification are due by 23 June for the consultancy services contract for the new headquarters of state-owned Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel). The new offices will be built opposite Seeb International Airport, and...

Target bids low on Adco job.(UAE)(Target Engineering Construction Company)(Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The local Target Engineering Construction Company is low bidder on the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations (Adco) project to build new clusters and services facilities at Asab, following the opening of commercial offers in late May....

Work to start on Al-Jaber project in DMC.(UAE)(Dubai Media City)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Construction work is due to start in July on a 40-storey office and hotel development in Dubai Media City (DMC) for the local Al-Jaber Establishment. Plans call for the work to be finished by 2006. Al-Jaber is already a major investor in Dubai...

RJ prepares for privatisation with 737 aircraft deal: older Airbus fleet to be retired.(Jordan)(Royal Jordanian)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Royal Jordanian (RJ) has signed a preliminary agreement with the US' Boeing Commercial Airplanes to acquire 10 new 737 aircraft as part of a plan to modernise in preparation for privatisation. The deal covers the purchase of five...

Agreement nears on ACT consultant.(Yemen)(Aden Container Terminal)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... An agreement is now expected around 10 June on the consultancy contract to manage the process of selecting a new operator for Aden Container Terminal (ACT), The client, Yemen Ports Authority in partnership with the World Bank, is in final...

Abu Dhabi strengthens links with Germany: Saudi and UAE firms join up for car fleet deal.(UAE)(Mubadala Development Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Volkswagen (VW) of Germany has finalised a joint venture agreement with Abu Dhabi's state-owned Mubadala Development Company and Saudi Arabia's Olayan Group to buy car fleet management firm Leaseplan Corporation of the Netherlands from ABN...

Bidders line up for Sinai farm.(Egypt)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Bids are due on 15 July for the contract to design, build and manage a farm on reclaimed agricultural land in the Sinai peninsula. Four groups are pre-qualified for the estimated $25 million contract, which will include growing and marketing...

Tantalum Egypt revises project spec.(Egypt)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Australian consortium Gippsland is preparing to issue an international tender for the supply and installation of two mills for the production of tantalum from its joint-venture mining project at Abu Dabbab. On the basis of a full feasibility...

Nisco signs up for HEG expertise.(Iran)(National Iranian Steel Company )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... India's HEG has won a $15 million contract to provide technical assistance and expertise for the establishment of a graphite electrode manufacturing plant for National Iranian Steel Company (Nisco) in Yazd province. The four-year contract is...

Nicico to boost copper production.(Iran)(National Iranian Copper Industries Company )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Prequalification is due to close on 7 June for a contract to upgrade the tailing treatment plant at the Sarcheshmeh copper complex near Rafsanjan in Kerman province. The work will involve the upgrade of existing tailing capacity to 70 per cent...

Al-Habtoor acquires three DIP plots.(UAE)(Dubai Investments Park )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The local Al-Habtoor Group has signed an agreement to acquire three plots of land at Dubai Investments Park (DIP) for projects worth AED 100 million ($27.2 million). Al-Habtoor Motors has acquired a 50,000-square-metre plot to build a training...

Early July award planned on Al-Ezzal.(Bahrain)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Ministry of Finance & National Economy is evaluating the five bids for the kingdom's first independent power project (IPP), called Al-Ezzal, and expects to submit its report to the tender board on 23 June. The submission will be followed by...

Funding sought for Red-Dead Conveyor study.(Jordan)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Amman is seeking World Sank funding for an estimated $10 million feasibility study into the $800 million Red Sea-Dead Sea Conveyor project. Speaking at the start of June at the International Water Demand Management conference in Amman, Water &...

Austrians take second GIS substation.(Jordan)(gas-insulated switchgear )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... National Electric Power Company (Nepco) has awarded Austria's VA Tech T&D a $28 million contract to supply and install a new 400-kV gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) substation at Samra. The turnkey contract involves the supply of six bays of...

GMRA upgrades phase 3 Kufra design study.(Libya)(Great Manmade River Authority)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Great Manmade River Authority (GMRA) has upgraded the preliminary design contract for the Kufra section of phase 3 of the Great Manmade River (GMR) project to detailed design level. The design studies are being undertaken by the UK office...

Bids invited for Sohar.(Oman)(Sohar transmission system project)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Consultancy bids have been invited by 21 June to supervise the construction of the Sohar transmission system project. The client is the Ministry of Housing, Electricity & Water. Bids are also due to be returned by 7 June for the supply and...

New chairman for DEWA.(UAE)(Dubai Electricity & Water Authority )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Matar Humaid al-Tayer has replaced Ali bin Salim al-Owais as chairman of Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA), according to a decree issued in late May. General manager Saeed Mohammed Ahmed al-Tayer was also promoted to managing director....

Award nears on phase 5 substations: Austro-German team is frontrunner out of eight.(Qatar)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... A consortium of Germany's Siemens T&D and Austria's VATechT&D is the frontrunner for the substation package on phase 5 of the Qatar transmission project. The package, valued at about QR 430 million ($118 million), is the largest on the...

Bids due for Muscat wastewater package.(Oman)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Bids are due by 19 July for the third package on the first phase of the Muscat Wastewater project. The deadline for bidding for the second package, covering the Bawshar wastewater collection system and treated effluent redistribution system,...

ONE relaunches hybrid power project.(Morocco)(Office National de l'Electricite )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Office National de l'Electricite (ONE) has relaunched the kingdom's first solar/thermal power plant in the northeast city of Ain Beni Mathar and invited companies to apply for prequalification by 28 July for the project's procurement and...

Manama signs free trade agreement with US: only US congressional approval outstanding for "pacesetter" deal.(Bahrain)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Washington and Manama signed a free trade agreement (FTA) on 27 May, reaching the deal after less than six months of negotiations. The agreement will come into force following US congressional approval, unlikely to be forthcoming before the...

World Bank to support Ahwaz, Shiraz.(Iran)(Ahwaz Water & Wastewater Company and Shiraz Water & Wastewater Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The World Bank in late May approved loans totalling $359 million to improve the quality of housing and sanitation in Ahwaz and Shiraz. The funds will support projects in low-income areas which suffer from poor public health infrastructure and...

BMA licenses new insurance firm.(Bahrain)(Bahrain Monetary Agency )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA) has granted a licence for captive insurance management to local investment advisory firm Stratum. The licence is the first of its kind in the GCC and is in line with BMA's efforts to develop Bahrain as a viable...

BMB shares suspended.(Bahrain)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Bahrain Stock Exchange on 1 June suspended share trading in BMB Investment Bank pending the completion of its long delayed refinancing. The suspension was made at the request of BMB. "The bank is in the final stages of what has been a...

DIB share trades cancelled.(UAE)(Dubai Islamic Bank )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... The Dubai Financial Market and Emirates Securities & Commodities Authority has cancelled all share trades in Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) made on 15 May. The action followed complaints made by some dealers of alleged insider trading. It is the...

Towry Law closes regional operations.(Regional)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Financial advisory group Towry Law, owned by UK-listed HHG, is to close its offices in Bahrain and Dubai, citing difficult market conditions. The closures, subject to regulatory approval, are part of a strategic review that will see Towry Law...

Citigroup exits Samba and Saudi Arabia ... Public Investment Fund takes up the stake.(Saudi Arabia)
June 4, 2004... Citigroup on 27 May announced the conclusion of the sale of its remaining 20 per cent stake in Samba Financial Group--the renamed Saudi American Bank--to the Public Investment Fund (PIF), part of the Finance Ministry. The long anticipated sale...

... As other foreign banks are ushered in.(Saudi Arabia)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Three international banks--BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan Chase & Company--have been awarded banking licences. The licence awards were approved by the cabinet on 31 May "We have been awarded a universal banking licence, which...

Bapco debt plans evolve: multi-tranche deal coming.(Bahrain)(Bahrain Petroleum Company)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... International and regional banks are expecting the request for proposals (RFP) documents on the reshaped debt package for Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) to be issued in late June or early July. The expected $850 million multi-tranche...

Financial close due on gas pipeline.(Jordan)(Fajr Company for Transferring & Marketing Natural Gas)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... Financial close is expected to be reached in the second half of June on the $300 million project to build the 393-kilometre local portion of the Egypt-Jordan gas transmission pipeline. The pipeline is being financed by a $160 million syndicated...

Banks think about QLNG.(Oman)(Oman LNG )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2004... International and regional banks with exposure to Oman LNG have been sounded out about the potential 15-year, $550 million 600 million debt package for the proposed 3.3 million-tonne-a-year Qalhat LNG (QLNG) project. "The initial talks...

Hitting home: industry and the economy may be booming, but the threat from homegrown and cross-border insurgents threatens to cut Saudi Arabia off from the outside world.(Special report: Saudi Arabia)
June 4, 2004... The single-mindedness of the killers left a lasting impression on the survivors of the Al-Khobar attack. 'Are you Muslim or Christian?" the four gunmen asked repeatedly as they prowled the Oasis compound. "We only want to kill Westerners." Some...

Few clouds on the horizon: soaring oil prices are set to push Saudi economic performance to ever-greater heights.(Economy)(Saudi Arabia)
June 4, 2004... The prospects couldn't be much better for the Saudi economy Following an extremely bright 2003, when gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 6.4 per cent and high oil revenues helped to generate a budget surplus of SR 45,000 million, figures for...

Exploring the desert: international companies are looking at investing $800 million in exploring for non-associated gas in the Empty Quarter.(Gas)
June 4, 2004... The quest to develop the kingdom's gas reserves took a major step forward last winter. The South Rub al-Khali (SRAK) joint venture--between the Royal Dutch/Shell Group, France's Total and Saudi Aramco--ratified the agreement to explore, develop...

Feeding the world: the world's biggest oil company recorded an excellent year in 2003 and looks set to repeat the performance.(Saudi Aramco)
June 4, 2004... It has been an eventful year for Saudi Aramco--the world's biggest oil company and the one true swing producer with an installed crude oil production capacity of more than 10 million barrels a day (b/d). First, the company ensured the flow...

Looking to pass the Shouaiba test: power utility Saudi Electricity Company faces huge challenges in satisfying electricity demand over the coming 20 years.(Power & Water)
June 4, 2004... Crunch time is approaching in the Saudi electricity sector. The kingdoms population explosion and rapidly expanding industrial base will push annual demand for electricity to an estimated 30,800 MW in 2005, some 2,000 MW above current installed...

Sizing up opportunities: one of the kingdom's biggest trading companies, the AH Al-Zamil Group, is extending its sphere of influence with the launch of a new petrochemicals company.(AH Al-Zamil Group)
June 4, 2004... Sahara Petrochemicals Company closed its initial public offering (IPO) on 2 June. Covering about 20 per cent of the company's SR 1,500 million share capital, the SR 300 million IPO was oversubscribed 22 times, as private investors scrambled to...

The shape of things to come: a state-of-the-art hospital in Al-Khobar could provide a template for tertiary healthcare across the kingdom.(Healthcare)(Saad Specialist Hospital)
June 4, 2004... On arrival at the Saad Specialist Hospital in Al-Khobar, a patient could be forgiven for thinking he had walked into a luxury hotel rather than a hospital. The sumptuous atmosphere created by the polished marble floors, high ceilings and...

Tenders.(Business Opportunities)
June 4, 2004... MEED Tenders is the most comprehensive weekly listing of business opportunities in Middle East countries. To promote your business opportunity to more than 50,000 business people who read MEED every week, send details to MEED Editor, 33-39...

Contracts: May.
June 4, 2004... More than $4,296 million worth of contracts were awarded in the Middle East in May, according to this selected checklist compiled from MEED reports. If you want details of your organisation to be included, please send information to the MEED...