Saudi Aramco’s $9bn-plus Jizan Refinery that is under construction in the southwest of Saudi Arabia is expected to be fully commissioned in the first half of 2018.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Jizan Economic Forum, a source close to the scheme said that if the project execution went to schedule both the refinery and integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant would start commissioning in 2017 and be fully operational by mid-2018.

“We are hoping for early 2018, but this is an extremely technical project,” said the official. Nothing this technical has been attempted before and both the refinery and power plant are being built in an extremely remote region. This means there could be some delays getting equipment and personnel to site.”

The sheer size of the scheme means that there has been some serious planning issues, including how best to manage personnel working onsite. At the height of construction there will be 70,000 workers and the logistics involved around housing, feeding and transporting them to and from the site will need careful co-ordination between the stakeholders.

The combined budget for the port, refinery and IGCC power plant is fast approaching $20bn, putting it on a par with the Sadara Chemical Company petrochemicals complex at Jubail.

MEED reported February that South Korea’s SK Engineering & Construction had negotiated $900m of additional funds for the crude distillation/vacuum distillation unit at the scheme.

The Jizan Economic Forum is being hosted by Saudi Aramco and in Jizan City between 25-26 February with an aim to attract investment in the region.