Refinery
Saudi Aramco said on Wednesday that a minor fire that was controlled at its Riyadh refinery was due to "an operational incident"
Other industry sources and parties interested in the plant have previously said idling the refinery, which the government said owed 13 billion dirhams in unpaid taxes, made it more difficult to find a buyer.
The nation’s biggest refiners spent billions building units capable of turning heavy, sour crude into gasoline, diesel fuel and other products.
The world’s second-largest oil user processed 51.51 million tons of crude last month, equivalent to 12.13 million bpd, according to the National Statistical Bureau.
The project includes a 1.2 million-barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery integrated with petrochemical facilities with a total capacity of 18 million tonnes per year.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $65.58 per barrel, up 9 cents, or 0.1 percent, from their previous close.
The refinery in Fao will have a 300,000 barrel-per-day capacity and include a petrochemical plant, it said.
Saudi Aramco is expected to shut down its condensate splitter at its Ras Tanura refinery by the end of November for a month for planned maintenance work.
The company invested around LE 151 million in the previous fiscal year.
The price hikes come on the back of a stronger market structure for Middle East crude benchmark Dubai and refining margins.
Feasibility studies of the new project will take 28 weeks.
