Baker Hughes in Saudi JV

Oilfield chemicals player Baker Hughes and Dussur, which is co-owned by Sabic and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, have signed an agreement to form a joint venture company to make oilfield and industrial chemicals in Saudi Arabia.

The 51-49 venture includes Baker Hughes’ existing chemical blend plant in Dammam and manufacturing facility in Jubail. The latter will supply the Saudi market while expanding localisation opportunities. The deal is expected to close in Q3.

The announcement came barely a week after Baker Hughes announced that it would be acquiring Altus Intervention, a Norwegian-based supplier of well intervention services, and down-hole oil and gas technology. The company said that this expands its portfolio by enhancing life-of-well capabilities as operators look to improve efficiencies from mature fields. The deal should close in 2H. A

lso active in the Saudi market is Halliburton, which has celebrated the opening of the Halliburton Chemical Reaction Plant at the PlasChem Park in Jubail. This is claimed to be “the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia to manufacture a broad range of chemicals for the entire oil and gas value chain as well as many other industries”.

As well as manufacturing, the investment will enable Halliburton to expand research and applications into speciality chemicals for oilfield stimulation and production. Other sectors that it will potentially service include industrial water and process treatment, plus contract manufacturing and tolling in agriculture, mining, personal care and other sectors.