In the early 1960s, Aramco was working to get its second offshore field, Manifa, to begin production by January 1964.
Protected by a Scott Air Pak, Khalil al-Ghamdi checks the oxygen in a storage vessel.
Here are some interesting headlines over the past 70 years.
Well No. 40, in the Ain Dar field, one of 31 wells successfully completed during 1951.
July 9, 1952
1951 Record Year in Aramco History
Crude oil production and refinery runs in Saudi Arabia last year established new all-time highs, F.A. Davies, chairman of Aramco, revealed.
In a report of operations for 1951 to the royal Saudi government, the Aramco chairman said developments last year "continued to advance Saudi Arabia in importance in the international petroleum trade.”
Crude oil production in 1951 rose to 277,962,605 barrels, or a daily average of 761,541 barrels, from 199,546,638 barrels, or 546,703 barrels daily in 1950, he disclosed.
Refinery runs last year climbed to a record 58,107,534 barrels, or an average of 159,199 barrels per day, from the previous year’s 38,364,335 barrels, or an average of 105,108 barrels daily.
Davies said a new catalytic polymerization plant at the Ras Tanura refinery is expected to be completed in 1953 “to improve gasoline quality and yields.”
July 18, 1962
Manifa to Start Producing in 1964
Aramco’s second offshore field, Manifa, is scheduled to begin production by January 1964, with facilities capable of handling 125,000 barrels per calendar day.
Onshore plant equipment will be established on the south shore of Manifa Bay, approximately 70 kilometers south by road from the present Safaniyah camp, and 150 km along the coast northwest of Ras Tanura.
Present forecasts of requirements for Khursaniyah-type crude are 140,000 barrels per calendar day (bpcd) for 1963 and 180,000 bpcd for 1964. The existing capacity of Khursaniyah production facilities is 125,000 bpcd and reservoir engineers do not recommend an increase due to possible excessive pressure decline.
VAC-ALL, shown here in action, was added to the fleet through the joint efforts of the Transportation Department and the Maintenance organization.
July 19, 1972
The Big Sweep
Newest addition to Aramco’s equipment fleet is the industrial vacuum cleaner, VAC-ALL. The unit is mounted on an International Harvester heavy-duty all-wheel drive truck chassis fitted with a Cummins diesel engine.
VAC-ALL has a net payload volume of 16 cubic yards, equivalent to the load of three dump trucks. It will be used year-round in a variety of industrial applications — for sand removal under and around cross-country pipelines, the cleaning of catch basins, sludge pits and sewer traps, for sweeping, and for removal of sludge from oil storage tanks in preparation for inspection or repair.
July 14, 1982
Breathing Apparatus Center Offers Instruction Courses
The new breathing apparatus training center in Dhahran is now fully equipped to instruct Aramco personnel in the proper use of air breathing apparatus.
This year, more than 200 employees have been trained in a series of courses offered regularly through area fire departments. “Standardizing the program in all Aramco areas to allow for close coordination between certified breathing apparatus trainers and registrants has been a top priority,” said Mohammed al-Otaibi, Central Area fire marshal.
Located on the al-Khobar Road, the Aramco breathing apparatus center at the Fire Training Grounds offers several different courses of instruction. A basic two-hour course covers the correct use of breathing devices and an eight-hour course teaches after-use maintenance. Demonstrations, film presentations and models illustrating the interior components of the devices provide an overall knowledge of breathing apparatus functions. The “Smokehouse,” a five-story training facility can be transformed to simulate onshore and offshore work conditions.
Above, a 203-ton desalter vessel dwarfs men and machines as it is lifted onto its foundations during the Haradh Increment II project.
July 10, 2002
Haradh Hits Milestone
The Haradh Arab Light Crude Increment-II project team recently celebrated 2 million man-hours with a lost-time injury.
The achievement, after 10 months into construction of the sprawling Eastern Province facility, included the collective efforts of the Saudi Aramco project team and more than seven contractors.
The project’s safety record belies its aggressive timeline: The project’s gas-oil separation plant, oil pipelines, and other facilities are scheduled to be up and running the first quarter of 2003.
The project is unrelated to the Haradh Gas Project under construction in the same area.
— The Arabian Sun: July 18, 2022