Aramco to self-finance 50 percent of new refinery

An oil executive says state-run Saudi Arabian Oil Co. will self-finance 50 percent of a roughly $8 billion joint-venture refinery with France's Total SA.

Salem Shaheen, chief executive of SATROP, the joint-venture company that will build and operate the refinery, told Al-Ektisadiyah newspaper Tuesday that Saudi Aramco will self-fund half the costs while the remainder will be covered through marketing of the plant's production.

The refinery in Jubail has a projected capacity of 400,000 barrels per day of crude. It is to begin operations by the end of 2012.

Aramco holds a 62.5 percent stake in the project. Total's share is 37.5 percent.

The plant is one of several planned in Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter.