Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) has asked firms to bid for work on project to upgrade the gas production units at its Mina al-Ahmadi refinery.

The state-owned company, which operates the refinery, asked prequalified companies to submit engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) bids by 13 July. KNPC has prequalified 37 international companies to bid for the contract.

The project will upgrade the pressure protection system of the gas production units at the 466,000 barrels a day (b/d) refinery.

The scope of work includes engineering, supply and installation of an anti-surge control system, analysers, a burner management system, a flame scanner system, replacement of KV valves, field instruments, cables, strainers and other associated civil, mechanical and electrical works.

Kuwait is currently overhauling its refining sector through two new megaprojects with a combined value of more than $25bn.

KNPC has awarded the main EPC packages on the Clean Fuels Project, which involves upgrading and expanding the Mina al-Ahmadi and Mina Abdullah refineries to increase their combined capacity to 800,000 barrels a day (b/d), from 736,000 b/d currently. The Shuaiba refinery, which sits between the two, will be retired as its rehabilitation has been deemed economically unfeasible.

The main packages of the separate New Refinery Project were tendered at the start of June with the closing date for bids set on 26 October.