making a difference Annual Review 2010 Table of contents Introduction ......................................................................... 10 Exploration ........................................................................... 18 Oil Operations ..................................................................... 22 Gas Operations .................................................................. 28 Refining & Petrochemicals .......................................... 34 Table of Research & Technology ................................................. 40 Transportation & Distribution ..................................... 48 contents Human Resources ............................................................ 54 Safety & Health ................................................................. 62 Communities ....................................................................... 68 Corporate Citizenship ...................................................... 72 Awards ................................................................................... 84 Saudi Aramco by the Numbers ................................ 88 A Saudi Aramco engineer checks pressure on a propane-transfer pump at a company gas plant. Making a difference Saudi Saudi Aramco Aramco Annual Review Annual Review 2010 2010 2 1 Saudi Saudi Aramco Aramco Annual Review The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS AMIR SULTAN Annual Review 2010 2010 2 King ‘Abd AllAH IBN ‘Abd Al-’Aziz Al SA’ud IBN ‘ABD AL-’AZIZ AL SA’UD 3 The Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Aviation, and Inspector General Seated, from left: H.E. Dr. Khaled S. Al-Sultan, H.E. Dr. Abdul Rahman A. Al-Tuwaijri, H.E. Dr. Ibrahim A. Al-Assaf, H.E. Ali I. Al-Naimi, Khalid A. Al-Falih and H.E. Dr. Mohammed I. Al-Suwaiyel. Standing, from left: Abdulaziz F. Al-Khayyal, Peter Woicke, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, David J. Key Figures O’Reilly, Salim S. Al-Aydh, Amin H. Al-Nasser Saudi Saudi Aramco Aramco Annual Review Oil reserves and production Annual Review 2010 Board 2010 4 Recoverable crude oil & condensate reserves ............................................................260.1 billion barrels 5 Crude oil production (average per day) .............................................................................7.9 million barrels of Directors Crude oil production (annual) ................................................................................................... 2.9 billion barrels Board convenes in China Gas reserves and production for first time Gas reserves...........................................................................................................279 trillion standard cubic feet For the first time in its history, Saudi Aramco’s Gas production Board of Directors in 2010 met in the People’s (raw gas to gas plants – average per day) ....................................9.4 billion standard cubic feet Republic of China. The regular spring semi- Gas production (annual) ...................................................................................3.4 trillion standard cubic feet annual meeting in Beijing on May 6-7 was New discoveries a good occasion to celebrate the company’s Oil fields ................................................................................................................Namlan, AsSayd, Qamran, Arsan strong, multifaceted and mutually beneficial Gas field....................................................................................................................................................................... Jalamid relationship with Chinese corporations and institutions. Saudi Aramco’s record of success Wells completed and reputation for reliability depends in large Oil exploration .....................................................................................................................................................................27 part on our international partners, customers, Gas exploration ..................................................................................................................................................................17 vendors and other service providers, and Oil development .............................................................................................................................................................148 the various institutions and organizations Gas development ...........................................................................................................................................................105 with whom we interact in fulfilling our Workovers responsibilities as a major energy provider to Oil wells ..................................................................................................................................................................................88 the world. The Saudi Aramco Board’s regular Gas wells ...............................................................................................................................................................................13 annual winter meeting is always held at its Water wells ..........................................................................................................................................................................10 headquarters in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Chairman’s Mesage Chairman’s Message In 2010, it was evident in the petroleum industry that the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. Last year, we petroleum will continue to be central to the saw once again that as economies expand and world’s health, happiness and prosperity for contract, demand for energy largely follows suit. the foreseeable future. Therefore, even as we sustain our efforts to find and produce more During 2010, we witnessed a tentative rebound hydrocarbon energy reliably and responsibly, of the global economy, led in particular by we must also strive to use all of our resources the economies of developing Asia, from the more efficiently, both to conserve them for worldwide recession that began in 2008. A future generations and to protect the planet by steady and reliable supply of energy was reducing our environmental footprint. Saudi needed to fuel that growth, in particular the Saudi Aramco Aramco Annual Review petroleum and petroleum products required The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Annual Review 2010 2010 to build new infrastructure, fuel vehicles, fire ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abd Al-’Aziz Al Sa’ud, and Crown 6 7 power plants, boost food production and sustain Prince Sultan ibn ‘Abd Al-’Aziz Al Sa’ud continue the industries that manufacture products — to provide valuable support to Saudi Aramco as often themselves made of hydrocarbons — that it strives to fulfill its mission as the Kingdom’s enhance the quality of life for consumers national petroleum enterprise. Coupled with around the globe. the wise guidance of the nation’s leadership, over the past year the efforts of the men and Looking forward, as the global economic women of Saudi Aramco have solidified the recovery appears to gather speed and gain company’s well-earned reputation for reliability strength, so too will the demand for a greater of supply and prudent stewardship of the supply of petroleum energy. In fact, global nation’s valuable natural resources. I would like energy demand is projected to grow by some to take the opportunity to thank each of them 40 percent within the next two decades, as for their valued contributions and unwavering more people attain higher levels of prosperity dedication throughout 2010. and require more energy to power their more affluent lifestyles. Asia alone is expected to account for 60 percent of that incremental growth, heralding further transformation in the global energy landscape. Ali I. Al-Naimi Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources But once again, even as some things change, and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Saudi others will remain the same. For example, Aramco President’s Foreword A dedicated work force of talented people with a sense of purpose made the year 2010 a signal success for Saudi Aramco, even as the worldwide petroleum industry and has long been a global technology leader, and global economic system faced stressful times. we enhanced our reputation in 2010 with the With hard work, forbearance and a continuing launch of the award-winning GigaPOWERS™ commitment to operational excellence, plus a reservoir simulation technology. far-seeing and patient investment strategy, our company once again made a positive difference While pioneering new ways to protect the in our nation and around the globe. environment, we produced more energy for the world. A prime example is our innovative Manifa We continued our proud legacy of discovery, project’s complex causeway system, completed Saudi finding four new oil fields and one new gas last year, which permits drilling in shallow Saudi Aramco Aramco Annual Review field, and we added six new oil reservoirs and waters while preserving a precious ecosystem. Annual Review 2010 2010 three new gas reservoirs to existing fields. 8 9 In the corporate citizenship realm, Saudi Aramco Honoring our tradition as a reliable and took a giant step last year when construction stabilizing force in world energy markets, Saudi began on the truly transformative King Aramco maintained its globally essential spare- Abdulaziz Center for World Culture. oil production capacity while increasing gas production capacity and output to all-time highs. I am deeply