Saudi Aramco Celebrates its Partners’ Success in the 5th In-Kingdom Total Value Add (iktva) Forum & Exhibition

His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Eastern Province, opened today the 5th iktva Forum & Exhibition, in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy, and His Royal Highness Prince Ahmed bin Fahd bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Governor of Eastern Province.

HRH the Governor echoed the support of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, for local content, in order to achieve the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, indicating that the Kingdom is full of opportunities and bright prospects, wishing Saudi Aramco continued success.

Since its inception in 2015, the iktva program has demonstrated the inherent benefits of creating successful partnerships with business, government, and academia. The synergy driven by the iktva program has delivered greater levels of prosperity for the Kingdom, the local business community and Saudi Aramco with 56% of procurement spent in-Kingdom in 2019.

Amin H. Nasser, Saudi Aramco President & CEO, emphasized the impact of partnerships in creating a highly efficient, cost-effective and reliable supply chain by stating: “Future readiness is forged from a culture of excellence - by giving people the skills they need to succeed in the jobs of the future. We’re enabling a vibrant commercial ecosystem that will drive efficiency and reliability of our operations. Through effective governance, iktva has created infrastructure, streamlined processes, and built capabilities that improve return on investment and leverage greater value for our company.”

Nasser concluded his remarks by highlighting that the iktva program has a win-win nature in creating a sustainable vibrant multi-sector ecosystem. “IKTVA continues to open new doors of opportunity by enhancing the business environment for young Saudis, for entrepreneurs and for businesses, big and small. Ultimately, what counts is the impact it has on people’s lives – that’s iktva in action,” Nasser said.

Saudi Aramco signed 66 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and strategic and commercial collaborations valued at more than US$21 billion with international partner companies and entities from 11 countries in several industrial and business sectors across the Saudi Arabian energy sector.

In addition, Saudi Aramco signed a joint venture agreement with Baker Hughes to establish a 50/50 Non-Metallic Joint Venture (NM JV). The joint venture will be a multi-sectorial non-metallic investment platform designed to innovate, develop and manufacture composite materials for both oil and gas as well as non-oil and gas applications. The JV will leverage polymer materials and state-of-the-art manufacturing processes to deliver transformational non-metallic products, starting with Reinforced Thermoplastic Pipes (RTP) and an investment of around $US110 MM. The JV facility will be located at the King Salman Energy Park (SPARK), and will serve the MENA region. 

Saudi Aramco’s participation in the NM JV aims to help promote the use of RTPs which consume less energy and are less carbon intensive compared to conventional steel pipes. The NM JV is in line with Saudi Aramco’s strategy to support R&D, and deploy lower carbon intensity applications and products that are derived from oil.

The MoUs and commercial collaborations included the following companies and entities:

• Hyundai Heavy Industry
• Seimens
• Aasia Steel
• Oilfields Supply Center (OSC)
• Al-Khorayef Petroleum
• Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems
• Schneider Electric
• Honeywell
• Advanced Electronic Company (IT)
• XDM 3D Printing
• Shengong New Materials
• XINFOO
• Saudi Exports Development Authority

In addition to the signing of MoUs and commercial collaborations, an awards program was held to celebrate the program’s success stories for the year.

The iktva 2020 Excellence Awards winners:

• Highest Overall iktva Performance:
  • In services sector: Arabian Drilling Company
  • In construction sector: Nasser Saeed Al-Hajri (NSH)
  • In manufacturing sector: Saudi Steel Pipe Company

• Best in Training & Development:
  • Halliburton Energy Services

• Best in Supplier Development:
  • Schlumberger Middle East

• Best in Saudization:
  • In manufacturing sector: Advanced Electronics Company Ltd.
  • In services sector: Baker Hughes

• Best in Female Employment:
  • Tamimi Global

• Best in Export:   
  • In manufacturing sector: Jeddah Cable Company
  • In services sector: JGC Gulf International

The "iktva" program has attracted 468 investments from 25 countries with an estimated capital expenditure of $6.5B, resulting in 44 industrial facilities completed to-date, with another 64 facilities under construction. These investments contribute to building an integrating Saudi supply chain and bringing new capabilities to the Kingdom, such as the first facility for plate casing, the first Reinforced Thermoplastic Pipe (RTP) plant, and the first facility for drilling motor relining.