Saudi Arabia’s Rabigh Refining & Petrochemical Company’s (PetroRabigh) third-party logistics (3PL) programme has delivered significant benefits the company’s head of logistics, Bander Boitey, told the MEED Middle East Petrochemicals 2011 Conference on 17 May.

“Our programme now encompasses 3,000 separate, in-bound shipments every month,” said Boitey. He said the effectiveness of the programme is indicated by the fact that 13-15 per cent of PetroRabigh’s costs are due to logistics. The average for the company’s peers is 17-20 per cent. The 3PL programme was launched for in-bound goods in 2008. Boitey said PetroRabigh is planning to introduce a 3PL programme for all imported materials later this year.

PetroRabigh owns and operates a 400,000-barrel-a-day (b/d) integrated refining and petrochemical plant. The company, which is listed on the Saudi Arabian stock exchange, is 37.5 per cent owned by oil major Saudi Aramco and 37.5 per cent by Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Company.