Petro Rabigh CEO: Cutting debt boosted financials; ‘Bottom of the Barrel’ project in FEED stage

Othman Al-Ghamdi, CEO of Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Co. (Petro Rabigh)

Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Co. (Petro Rabigh) has made significant progress in strengthening its financial position by substantially reducing debt over the past few years, resulting in lower financing costs and improved solvency ratios, CEO and President Othman Al-Ghamdi said.

In an exclusive interview with Argaam, Al-Ghamdi stated that the company will continue to pursue disciplined capital management to maintain a strong financial position while funding strategic projects that support sustainable growth.

He added that lower financing costs in Q2 were driven by the early repayment of certain loans, noting that the improved financial structure has given the company greater flexibility in managing its obligations and financing future growth plans.

Regarding “the Bottom of the Barrel project”, Al-Ghamdi said it is one of the company's key strategic asset development projects and is currently in the front-end engineering design (FEED) stage.

He said the project aims to maximize the value generated from every processed barrel by converting lower-value products into higher value-added products, enhancing the company's competitiveness and supporting long-term earnings growth once completed.

Commenting on the company's Q2 financial performance, Al-Ghamdi said the return to profitability reflects the transformation program implemented over recent years, which focused on improving operational reliability, enhancing asset efficiency and strengthening financial discipline.

He added that the program contributed to higher production and sales volumes, alongside improved refining margins and lower financing costs resulting from debt reduction, enabling the company to post its highest quarterly net profit on record, eliminate accumulated losses and return to retained earnings.

The exec further noted that the primary driver of revenue growth in Q2 was the significant improvement in operating performance and higher production rates, which led to increased sales volumes of both refined and petrochemical products.

He indicated that stronger refining margins and higher prices for several products also supported the record financial performance, emphasizing that the quarter's results reflected a combination of improved operating performance and more favorable market conditions rather than a single factor.

He said refining margins improved significantly in Q2, supported by continued strong demand for several products, particularly diesel and jet fuel, in addition to ongoing global supply chain disruptions.

Al-Ghamdi added that petrochemical markets continued to face some challenges, although limited supply supported prices for a number of products. He noted that the sustainability of margins remains dependent on global market conditions.

He stressed that the company remains focused on factors within its control, including improving operating efficiency, enhancing asset reliability and strengthening its competitive position.

On demand trends, Al-Ghamdi said refined products recorded healthy demand during Q2, particularly in Asian markets, supporting refining margins.

He added that petrochemical markets continued their gradual recovery, supported by improving supply-demand balances across several products, as well as customers' continued focus on securing supplies amid global logistics challenges, reinforcing the importance of operational efficiency and the ability to meet delivery commitments on time.

He noted that the company actively manages its sales and export allocation across markets in line with commercial and logistics conditions to maximize value.

Al-Ghamdi said the company does not provide quarterly financial guidance, but entered Q3 from a stronger financial position and with high operational readiness. He affirmed that Petro Rabigh will continue executing its transformation program, enhancing asset reliability, improving operational efficiency and capitalizing on market opportunities to deliver sustainable value to shareholders.