The capital expenditure of Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) jumped by 95 percent in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, hitting approximately KWD1.7 bn. The state-owned KOC manages the upstream industry in Kuwait. The approved allocation, which is substantially higher than the previous fiscal year’s KWD871 mn, is dedicated to various ongoing oil and gas projects.
Strategic objectives
KOC’s higher capital spending is in an effort to boost crude output capacity and leverage the country’s abundant gas resources.
By 2030, the country aims to boost oil production capacity to 3.5 mn barrels per day. Additionally, it plans to develop gas deposits in an effort to meet local demand while minimizing gas import reliance.
Through optimizing capital spending, KOC hopes to achieve some of its strategic objectives. Apart from expanding crude oil production capacity, they also plan to double non-associated gas production. Their target is to increase the output from 500 mn cubic feet per day (cfd) to 1 bn cfd.
Kuwait is an important member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which is a group of prominent oil producers in the world. In 2022, it held six percent of the global oil reserves.
Meanwhile, by the end of March last year, KOC’s assets hit a record high of KWD16.7 bn. High crude prices fueled this increase.
Read: Kuwait aims to increase oil production
Kuwait’s oil projects
Back in June, media reports stated that KOC plans to award 22 oil projects to domestic and global companies.
The initiatives encompass various endeavors such as the installation of pipelines within KOC’s facilities in West Kuwait. The state-owned company also aims to provide maintenance services at KOC’s export terminals. Plans to construct pipelines in the Jurassic gas regions of North Kuwait and power networks in key areas are also included.
In the first four months of 2023, KOC has already granted 41 contracts, with a cumulative worth of approximately KWD630 mn.
For the next seven years, Kuwait’s objective is to inject about KWD5.8 bn into 10 major projects. One of the most notable is the construction of a petrochemical complex near the Southern Al-Zour oil refinery. The development of a sixth LPG production unit is also scheduled to commence in the 2028-2029 fiscal year.
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