Mohammad Ghazi al-Mutairi

Position: CEO, Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC)

Biography: It could be a difficult year for Mohammad Ghazi al-Mutairi, CEO of Kuwait’s state downstream operator, KNPC. Contracts worth a total of $12bn were awarded last year for the country’s Clean Fuels Project and more big downstream deals are expected in 2015 as the successful bidders for the $14bn Al-Zour New Refinery Project are announced.

The surge in awards comes after years of inaction, and has been presented as a breakthrough by Kuwaiti officials. But behind the scenes, contractors have voiced concerns over whether Kuwait has the capacity to handle the massive workload. Al-Mutairi became CEO of KNPC in 2013.

He joined the firm in 1987 as a chemical engineer and worked at its three refineries. A veteran of Kuwait’s refining sector, there are few better qualified than Al-Mutairi to oversee the contracts, but the sheer magnitude of the projects will make them difficult to manage simultaneously.