Pictured from left, Mohammed Al-Mulhim, Ahmed Al-Subaey, Abdulaziz Al-Judaimi, Ibrahim Al-Buainain, and Nader Al-Arfaj.
Abdulaziz M. Al-Judaimi, Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president of Downstream, recently officiated the inauguration ceremony of Saudi Aramco Trading Singapore (SATS).
The expansion of Aramco Trading in Singapore is part of Aramco’s strategy to optimize value across the whole oil and products chain, servicing our markets and customers, as well as support Saudi Aramco’s expanding refining operations and petrochemical output.
Growing Demand
Oil product demand in Asia Pacific has grown over the past decade to reach 32.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2016, and Wood Mackenzie forecast that it will continue to grow based on an average Gross Domestic Product growth of 3.7% between 2016 and 2035. Demand will reach about 41 million bpd in 2035. China and India is forecast to account for over 75%, or 7 million bpd, of the demand growth in Asia Pacific.
According to Wood MacKenzie, cumulatively, demand from the Southeast Asian economies is forecast to increase by 2.3 million bpd between 2015 and 2035. Transport fuel demand will be the main driver of oil demand growth, accounting for around 66% of overall demand increase. The petrochemicals sector will also be a significant contributor to regional oil demand.
A Matter of Proximity
Currently the largest physical oil trading hub and price discovery center in Asia, Singapore also has the largest concentration of oil storage in Asia, with 10 million cubic meters of independent oil storage capacity.
Home to over 80% of the top 30 oil and gas companies, Singapore owns the world’s largest bunkering port.
Aramco Trading Company was established in October 2010 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Saudi Aramco that trades refined, liquid chemical, and polymer products.
Officially launched in January 2012, Aramco Trading is the global integrated platform for Saudi Aramco’s downstream assets, as well as for our international partners. Aramco Trading is a key player in the region, supplying to Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, Asia, and the Indian subcontinent.