Chinese banks lend over one-third of Jafurah project financing: Report

Jafurah is the largest non-associated gas development in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, estimated to contain 229 trillion standard cubic feet of raw gas and 75 billion Stock Tank Barrels

China’s biggest state banks are lending billions to Saudi Aramco’s Jafurah gas project, though its funds have passed on the opportunity to invest in the venture, according to Reuters.

Chinese banks provided more than a third of the financing for what will potentially be the biggest shale gas project outside of the US, with Bank of China, ICBC and China Construction Bank each lending about $1 billion and Agricultural Bank of China around $750 million.

According to Argaam’s data, Reuters reported recently that a group of investors, led by BlackRock’s arm Global Infrastructure Partners, was in talks with lenders to obtain funding of up to $10.3 billion to invest in the infrastructure of Saudi Aramco’s Jafurah gas field.

Saudi Aramco signed in August an $11 billion lease and leaseback deal involving its Jafurah gas processing facilities with a consortium of international investors, led by funds managed by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of BlackRock. As part of the transaction, a newly formed subsidiary, Jafurah Midstream Gas Company (JMGC), will lease development and usage rights for the Jafurah Field Gas Plant and the Riyas NGL Fractionation Facility and lease them back to Aramco for a period of 20 years.

Jafurah is the largest non-associated gas development in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, estimated to contain 229 trillion cubic feet of raw gas and 75 billion stock tank barrels. It is a key component in Aramco’s plans to increase gas production capacity by 60% between 2021 and 2030 to meet rising demand.