State refiner Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) has signed more than $12bn-worth of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts with three international consortiums for the long-awaited Clean Fuels Project (CFP) to upgrade the country’s refineries.

KNPC’s CEO Mohammed al-Mutairi signed the deals on 13 April with the groups led by the UK’s Petrofac, the US’ Fluor and Japan’s JGC Corporation.

The EPC deals were approved by Kuwait’s Central Tenders Committee (CTC) in February, after bids were submitted at the end of December. Adding together the awards with preparatory civil work and power projects, the CFP totals more than $13bn.

The CFP will increase refining capacity at the Mina al-Ahmadi and Mina Abdullah refineries to 800,000 barrels a day (b/d) from 730,000 b/d currently, while also retiring the older 200,000-b/d Shuaiba refinery.

South Korean firms have won more than half the contracts on the scheme, with five firms awarded up to $7bn-worth of work from the CFP’s total of $12bn.

Samsung Engineering was awarded $1.62bn-worth of work as part of its joint venture for the Mina Abdullah 1 package, with Petrofac and the US’ CB&I Lummus.

Daewoo Engineering & Construction was also awarded a $1.13bn deal for the Mina Abdullah 2 package, as part of a joint venture with Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), another South Korean firm, and Fluor.

GS Engineering & Construction and SK Engineering & Construction are also part of the joint venture with JGC Corporation for the Mina al-Ahmadi package. The deal is worth about $1.66bn each for the two firms.