Minister of Energy patronises 16th Middle East Corrosion Conference and Exhibition

Under the patronage of Minister of Energy His Excellency Dr. Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza, Bahrain hosted the 16th Middle East Corrosion Conference and Exhibition from February 8 to 11 at the Gulf Convention Centre in Gulf Hotel. The event was organized by Bahrain Society of Engineers with Nace Saudi Arabia section in coordination and National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA). Saudi Aramco and Al Qahtani Pipe Coating were the platinum sponsors, while there were 12 gold sponsors and a number of silver sponsors.

HE Dr. Mirza delegated the NOGA General Secretary Dr. Ahmed Ali Al Sharyan to open the conference and exhibition. Dr. Al Sharyan opened the conference on February 8 in the presence of a number of engineers, researchers and specialists and representatives of local, regional and international companies.

Dr. Al Sharyan expressed his gratitude and appreciation to the Minister for patronising the international event. He praised the efforts of the organizers for the good preparations, which contributed to a positive response in participation numbers. He said the event had, over the years, recorded a large number technical and research delegates, representatives from companies, research centres, universities, government institutions and industry associations from around the world. He thanked the speakers and heads of delegations, wishing all participants, exhibitors and visitors great updates from the scientific papers presented at the conference and from the modern technology displayed at the exhibition as well as numerous networking opportunities.

Dr. Al Sharyan said that such active participation in the conference and exhibition was a result of the good reputation earned and enjoyed by the event for its great organization ever since the event was first launched in 1979. He said corrosion was an important issue and cost the planet billions of dollars every year. It happened all over the world, and could affect every one of us, every day. In addition to material losses that can be counted and monitored, it resulted in human suffering including serious injuries and loss of life.

He said that though corrosion was a universal problem, since the Arabian Gulf was home to the world’s largest oil and gas reserves, it was particularly prone to it. The region’s natural resources were open to high humidity, saline soil and water. The region mainly produced sour crude, which was high in Sulphur, adding to the corrosive atmosphere generated by vehicular pollution and factory exhausts.

Dr. Al Sharyan said that since the GCC economies were highly dependent on oil and gas industries, it was a good idea to look into costs incurred due to degradation of the pipeline infrastructure for the transportation and storage of natural gas, crude oil, and refined petroleum products; equipment involved in the production of corrosive crude oil from aging reservoirs; production loss due to downtime for corrosion inspection and extensive chemical treatments needed to maintain the integrity of assets. The conference sessions addressed a wide range of key topics including corrosion in refineries, chemical and petrochemical industries, microbial and chemical treatment, and corrosion in oil and gas production, asset risk management, protective coatings, simulation research, and failure analysis.

Corrosion prevention and control were important issues for various industries, especially oil and gas industry, he said. He congratulated organizers for their keenness in making the event a great success by attracting specialists, experienced professionals and other interested parties, service providers and suppliers of the best anti-corrosion technologies in the world to participate. He said the 108 technical papers presented during the conference and discussions held were an important opportunity for all professionals and businesses in the field to comprehend the best technological advances in the field of corrosion prevention and control.

Mr. Ahmed Al Saadi from Saudi Aramco and Mr. James were among the speakers. Other speakers were Mr. Abdullah Al Ghamdi, Conference Chairman, and President of the Bahrain Society of Engineers Engineer Masoud Al Hermi. More than 700 delegates from several Gulf, regional and other countries participated.

The NOGA General Secretary opened the exhibition held on the side-lines of the conference, which showcased modern exhibits and products involving latest technology. More than 45 local, regional and international companies brought in exhibits working on advanced technologies.