Manufacturing Plant Strengthens Schlumberger, Saudi Aramco Ties

DAMMAM, October 07, 2009 --Close collaboration between Saudi Aramco and Schlumberger has resulted in some innovative and effective tools for well completions. And now it has resulted in a new Schlumberger manufacturing plant that will bring business, jobs and expertise to Saudi Arabia.

The new Completions Manufacturing Plant was inaugurated Oct. 5, ready to manufacture three products: single wire-wrap screens with a unique shrink-fit design; inflow control devices for existing producing wells; and injection devices to control the profile of water injection wells.

The technologies were developed in part after the two companies came together to address challenges in Saudi Aramco’s fields.

“The theme for this event, ‘Manufacturing, Technology and Investment in Saudi Arabia,’ is indeed an ideal fit for the milestone we are celebrating here today as it mirrors Saudi Aramco’s focus on maximum reservoir contact and local content,” said Zuhair A. Al-Hussain, vice president of Saudi Aramco Drilling and Workover.

Before an audience that included Amin H. Nasser, senior vice president of Exploration and Producing, and Abdulla A. Al Naim, vice president of Exploration, Al-Hussain elaborated on Saudi Aramco’s role in the plant, saying it had “set the stage for advancement in this field through various tests, assessments, technical exchanges and concrete commitment in employing this technology in our fields. In turn, Schlumberger responded with a matching commitment in launching the first Inflow Control Devices manufacturing plant in the Kingdom.”

He congratulated Schlumberger on its commitment to Saudi Arabia and to developing local content and talent. “This will bring us one step closer to making Saudi Arabia the home for developing technologies, designing innovative solutions and manufacturing high-tech equipment.

Sherif Foda, vice president and managing director of the Arabian GeoMarket, agreed. “This manufacturing facility reinforces our commitment, actually our obligation, to maximize local content and Saudization.” He said 2,000 of the company’s 3,900 employees are Saudi and that the company is aiming for 70 percent Saudization at this new facility

And to Saudi Aramco, he said, “A big thank you goes to you, our dear clients, for giving us the opportunity to make this a reality.”

Doug Pferdehirt, president of Schlumberger’s Reservoir Production Group, based in Houston, said Schlumberger was no stranger to Saudi Arabia, outlining the company’s history with the Kingdom, beginning in 1941. Then, he said, “We ran our first wire-line log on Well No. 27 in Dammam Field.”

Of the importance of the new manufacturing facility, the first of its kind in the Kingdom, he said, “Local manufacturing capability not only provides additional manufacturing flexibility but also allows the custom design and manufacturing of sand-control systems.”

Bringing the manufacturing to the Kingdom, Pferdehirt said, “will meet the requirements and needs of many fields. It offers, therefore a complete, made-in-Saudi-Arabia solution in a collaborative environment that we believe will be mutually beneficial to operators in the Kingdom as well as for Schlumberger.”

His company has invested $25 million in the plant and plans “to be around for a long time.” He thanked Nasser and his team “for their encouragement and support, without which we could not be taking part in this celebration today.”