Opening of 3rd Pipeline Operations and Management Middle East Conference and Exhibition

Minister of Energy His Excellency Dr. Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza opened on April 12, ‘3rd Pipeline Operations and Management Middle East Conference and Exhibition’ hosted by the Kingdom of Bahrain at the Gulf Convention Centre, Gulf Hotel. The event was attended by more than 600 participants from 17 countries, who discussed and reviewed more than 75 worksheets.

The Minister, in his speech, said that pipelines played a key role in oil and gas industry. They provided a highly efficient mode of transporting large quantities of crude oil, petroleum products, liquefied natural gas, jet fuel, chemicals and raw materials over long distances to countries around the world. He said pipelines transported billions of gallons of petroleum products every year over hundreds of thousands of kilometres, crossing international borders, remote frontiers and oceans, from production fields to refineries, airports to factories and public distribution centres. The Minister said he was pleased that billions of dollars were being invested by oil and gas producers to address health, safety and security, and environment concerns while planning pipeline networks. A lot of thought went into ensuring a reliable pipeline network was in place, and as much effort in maintaining them in the fittest environments possible.

H.E. Dr. Mirza said that the National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) had recently taken up several oil projects, including one for relocating aviation fuel reservoirs from Arad to Bahrain International Airport complex to improve the region’s safety and environment. A new oil pipeline between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia was one of the major projects, for which a contract was signed on September 17, 2015, which would help meet future requirements of crude oil in the modernized Bahrain Refinery, contributing to the production of environment friendly oil products. The 115 kilometres pipeline - 41 km under sea and 74 km on land – will have a capacity to transport 350 thousand barrels per day.

The Minister said oil and gas exploration in deep seas and deserts subjected pipelines to severe heat and other dangers posed by difficult environmental conditions, making them vulnerable to corrosion and damage. This created a dire need for strong pipelines to bear the risks of harsh weather. It was only logical to seriously invest in this direction and avoid big losses due to damaged pipes that could interrupt oil and gas flow to customers worldwide.

The Minister expressed his appreciation to Clarion Technical Conferences, Tiratsoo Technical and Global Webb Energy Consultants for organizing the key oil industry event in cooperation with NOGA. He congratulated the sponsors for making the event a grand success, with special mention to Saudi Aramco, Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), Rosen Middle East and Clock Spring, for their support. He praised the outstanding efforts of the organizers in choosing Bahrain to hold the pipeline series, a leading global oil and gas sector event. He praised them for the great preparation and organization, which made a positive contribution to large scale participation.

H.E. Dr. Mirza also opened the accompanying exhibition which was attended by more than 40 companies from a number of international, regional and Gulf countries. The expo showcased latest pipeline technology and provided a good opportunity for visitors to see and discuss developments in oil pipelines technology and safety, which in turn contributed to prolonging the life span of the pipeline networks.