Arabian Sun: Number 40

October 20, 2021		Vol. LXXVI, No. 40 Haradh Gas Plant	Aramco	a weekly Aramco publication for employees
		wins the GPA	Team Series
		Environmental	moves to
		Excellence Award	New York
		See page 3	See page 6

Sixth in a series

StabilizationThe Aramco hydrocarbon journey...

Decades of greenhouse

gas mitigation in our operational DNA

see pages 4 and 5

Scan the QR code to see the JHAH FAQs webpage.

Together we can end the pandemic: Important COVID-19 vaccination update

JHAH is pleased to offer COVID-19booster vaccinations in line with Ministry of Health (MOH) directives. Currently, the booster dose is available to Aramco employees and their eligible dependents aged 60 years or older, who received their second dose at least eight months ago.

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October 20, 2021 the arabian sun

2 company news

Enhancing decision making in operations

Power Systems Technical Forum shares digital solutions

Digital technologies are transforming the safety, reliability, and efficiency of the energy industry, and the Power Systems Engineering Department (PSED) recently hosted a virtual Technical Forum titled "IR 4.0 Solutions toward Excellence in Electrical System Reliability and Maintenance," to highlight digital solutions that are having a significant impact in operations.

Power Systems executive director Hasan J. Al Zahrani inaugurated the fo- rum, telling attendees, "To drive business growth, we need to stay vigilant toward the age of digitalization and au- tomation, as those two are the key concepts of reaping productivity and profit gains."

PSED manager Jobran A. Refai told participants that PSED's objective is to create value for its customers and to improve asset reliability and maintenance.

The forum included 10 technical topics associated with implementing IR 4.0 technologies on generation, transmis- sion, and distribution assets across the PS's value chain.

Digital Twin

Like a virtual mirror, a digital twin re-

flects the state of a physical asset and helps to optimize the design and operation of a device, predicting future faults with the goal of reducing or eliminating unplanned outages.

"The goal of a Digital Twin is to automate complex engineering tasks so that the results are always at your fingertips to improve decision making," said Bobby Noble, a digital twin expert from EPRI.

Optimized General Dispatch

This innovation provides optimized generation dispatch for the Shaybah power grid, and has been fully completed in-house.

Attendees at the event got the chance to ask questions to SMEs on IR 4.0 technologies.

In their presentation, Michael Burke, a PSED engineer, and Muhannad A. Al-Mulla, a power dispatch coordinator at Shaybah Power Dispatch, said the optimized tool helps Shaybah decision makers to dispatch sufficient generation to meet user-specified power demands.

Robotic Process Automation

Ahmed Alssaggaf, Jawahir Al-Shal- fan, and Hani Alhashimi, experts from SEC shared how their company had implemented robotic process automation (RPA) to automate enterprise processes in financial transactions. RPA handles the repetitive, routine, and structured processes and other important and sensitive work. By employing RPA

The forum highlighted digital solutions that are having a significant impact in our operations.

solutions, companies can save time and money while allowing the employee to handle meaningful tasks that require human experience and problem solving capabilities.

Intelligent Maintenance

Recommender System

Developed by Yokogawa, the Intelligent Maintenance Recommender System recommends actions for new de- fects, said Abdullatif Alnajim and Abrar Alamoudi, Yokogawa representatives.

Your voice

The business problem that is Big Data

By Ashish J. Abraham

[e-mail]

and

Manar M. Sughayer

[e-mail]

Dhahran

Your Voice reflects the thoughts and opinions of the writer, and not necessarily those of the pub- lication.

Big Data is a very catchy term that sounds straight forward but is tricky in reality. We all know what the word "big" means and we know what the word "data" means; put them togeth- er, and boom, both words instantly became more interesting and makes one an instant geek.

A traditional method of handling the data is to store it and process it in a single computer and every time the computer capability is not enough, we upgrade it with a better one - as a vertical upgrade. However, in some cases, these traditional methods are no longer feasible for the business needs and that's where big data comes in.

The value of data

Generally, big data is classified using the concept of the five Vs: volume, ve- locity, variety, veracity, and value. Let's consider the data in the health industry as an example. Hospitals across the world collect 2,314 exabyte (1 exabyte equals 1 billion gigabytes) annually in the form of patients' records, test re- sults, etc. All of this data is generated at a very high-speed rate, which attri-

butes to the velocity of big data. The collected data is of different variety: patient visits, log files, blood test re- sults, X-ray images, and CT scans. We need to keep the veracity of data in mind, knowing that some data may have come from faulty or non-calibrated sensors. But last, all of this data, when analyzed properly, can have val- ue: it can enable faster disease detec- tion, better and faster treatment with a lower cost, for instance.

Opportunities

The business applicability of big data is significant. Some of the broad applicable areas are cybersecurity, health care, tax compliance, business fore- casting, blockchain in the oil and gas industry, and the list goes on. The opportunities are plentiful, all we need is

1. strong link between a well-defined business objective and the use of big data technology.

There are many proven frameworks in the market that handle big data, i.e., Casandra, Hadoop, and Spark, etc., all of which use nontraditional methods of dealing with data. For example, Ha-

doop stores big data using a technique called distributed file system, where a big file will be broken into smaller chunks and stored in different com- puters. Similarly, processing the data will also be distributed among multiple computers, known as parallel process- ing. Once the data is stored and processed it can be analyzed to extract knowledge and insights from it with all the Vs applied giving the advantages back to business. Choosing the right technology to implement and to reap its success can be summed up by, "To implement Big Data, take small steps."

One of the biggest misconceptions of starting with big data is to think of it as a solution to an IT problem. A better way of looking at it is as a tool to solve a business problem. There is no point in collecting and storing all this data and then doing nothing with it. Instead, as now you know what big data is and how it can be used, look around you to determine and define a business problem that you would like to solve. Then, start with a small set of data and try to solve the problem. Once you are successful in solving it, scale up gradually, and that's how big data will find you.

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Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) is a joint stock company, with certificate of registration number 2052101105, having its principal office at P.O. Box 5000, Dhahran, Postal Code 31311, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and with fully paid capital of SAR 60,000,000,000.

the arabian sun October 20, 2021

					company news 3
	Downstream shares safety and manufacturing
	excellence with visiting Motiva team
	Driven by the Downstream Global				Members of the Motiva
Manufacturing Admin Area's records
in health, safety, security and environ-				team met with
			Mohammed Y. Al-Qahtani
ment (HSSE) and manufacturing ex-
			during their recent visit to
cellence, the Affiliates Manufacturing				Aramco facilities.
Excellence (AME) hosted a team from
Motiva's executive management, to
learn from Aramco's safety and manu-
facturing excellence, as part of promot-
ing and disseminating the downstream
excellence culture. Motiva is the largest
refinery in North America and a wholly
owned subsidiary of Aramco.
	The program strives to establish a
long-lasting partnership between Ar-
amco's Downstream affiliates and its
operating facilities, leveraging the new-
ly launched downstream model to cre-
ate new knowledge and best practices
exchange channels in the HSSE and
manufacturing management fronts.
The program was based on direct dia-
logue as well as field performance re-	Motiva's team then went to visit Ar-	Mohammed Y. Al-Qahtani, met with	were briefed about Aramco business
view and engagement at a number of	amco facilities at Yanbu' where they	the team and encouraged such collabo-	continuity while LPD held a workshop
best performing Downstream facilities.	experienced Yanbu' Refinery's 3-D Hub	ration across the Downstream portfolio,	that explored areas for collaborations
	Deep dive into safety	and the breakthroughs in 3-D printing.	embarking on the newly launched op-	with Aramco affiliates. At OE, the team
	Following the Yanbu' Refinery visit, the	erating model.	had an overview of Aramco's OE system
	team participated in the Yanbu' Natu-	Operational and	while EP presented the leading environ-
	The program began in east Ras	ral Gas Liquids Fractionation (YNGLF)	mental excellence program in Aramco.
	Tanura, where Motiva's manage-	Quarterly Safety Inspection along with
	ment attended the safety Boot Camp	area management and observed YNGLF	safety excellence	While the program was business fo-
	course. Throughout the course, Mo-	Innovation Center 4IR implementation.	The team then returned to the east,	cused, culture was imbedded as part of
	tiva's team went for a deep dive into		visiting SATORP in Jubail, OSPAS, the	the program in which AME facilitated
	Aramco's Safety Management Sys-	Motiva's team then went south to the	Loss Prevention Department (LPD),	visits to cultural sites such as Ithra, the
	tem. Following the Boot Camp pro-	Jazan Refinery Complex (JZRC), where	Operational Excellence (OE), and Envi-	Yanbu' Heritage Park, the Faifa Moun-
	gram, the visiting team went to the	they experienced the JZRC safety man-	ronmental Protection (EP). At SATORP,	tains, and al-Hasa. The visit by Motiva's
	Ras Tanura Refinery (RTR), where	agement journey during construction	the team observed the operational and	team is only the beginning for the AME
	they observed the engagement of	and commissioning. During the visit, the	safety excellence and discussed future	programs to leverage Downstream
	RTR management in field safety.	senior vice president of Downstream,	collaborations. At OSPAS, the team	portfolio excellence.
	Haradh Gas Plant wins the GPA Environmental Excellence Award
	The Haradh Gas Plant (HdGP) is an
	embodiment of the company's commit-
	ment to environmental excellence and
	sustainability. On its 100th anniversary,
	the U.S.-based Gas Processing Associa-
	tion (GPA) Midstream recognized HdGP
	with the prestigious environmental ex-
	cellence award during its annual con-
	vention held on Sept. 26, 2021, in San
	Antonio, Texas.
	Fahad S. Al-Dossary, HdGPD manager,
	hosted Wail A. Al-Jaafari, the Southern
	Area Gas Operations (SAGO) executive
	director and other SAGO management
	in celebration of this prestigious award.
	"We are proud of being selected for this
	prestigious environmental excellence
	award from such a reputable organiza-
	tion that has been serving the energy	Wail A.Al-Jaafari, executive director of Southern Area Gas Operations, Fahad S. Al-Dossary, manager, HdGPD, and other SAGO management
	industry since 1921. This award reinforc-	celebrating the GPA Environmental Excellence Award at the Haradh Gas Plant Department.
	es Aramco's commitment to manage its
	environmental footprint associated with
	its operations," said Al-Jaafari.	while improving environmental emission	ronment," said Al-Dossary.	industry operations.
	Innovative solutions in action	rates for the facility by reducing flaring	Sharing technical knowledge	midstream sector of energy, including
		and sulfur dioxide emissions."		Members of GPA are involved in the
	The GPA selected HdGP for its 2021 En-	The HdGP came on-stream in 2003	Aramco is an active member of the	the processing, storing, transporting,
vironmental Excellence Award because	and is one of the major gas plants in	GPA Midstream, supporting mid-	and marketing of oil, natural gas, and
of "several complementing environmen-	Aramco, located 300 km southwest of	stream industry standards and shar-	natural gas liquids. Aramco has diver-
tal sustainability initiatives and innova-	Dhahran. The HdGPD is a center for	ing technical knowledge and devel-	sified its portfolio to be globally lev-
tive solutions used by its department	talent growth and creativity. "We will	opments. These awards recognize the	eraged further down the value chain,
that resulted in greenhouse gas emission	continue to develop and deploy inno-	company's increased footprint in the	placing emphasis on developing its
reductions and air quality management	vation, optimize plant operations, and	midstream sector and ongoing com-	midstream and downstream business
for the plant." In a press statement, GPA	invest in high-impact environmental	mitment to operational excellence,	by building and integrating a network
noted, "The project yielded significant	projects to sustain HdGP's environ-	recognizing our role as an integrated	of refineries and petrochemical facilities
operational efficiency enhancements	mental excellence for a greener envi-	energy company in all three stages of	across suitable geographies.

Stabilization

more gases from

It is an intricate process, closely

Using wasted heat

The Aramco hydrocarbon journey (6)

Drilling

Extraction

Pipelines

Maintenance

NGL

October 20, 2021

the arabian sun

the arabian sun

October 20, 2021

4 company news

company news 5

Reservoir thinking

Decades of greenhouse gas

Stabilization

Refining

mitigation in our operational DNA

Separation

Gas

by Janet Pinheiro

Stabilization separates

umns.

treated crude,

through stripper and deethanizer col-

ad-Dahna desert is a metallic silhouette

man eyes. Outside operators work one

Abqaiq Plants - Glinting quietly on

the skyline of Saudi Arabia's eastern

allowing for safe

watched 24/7 by both digital and hu-

vessels, and tanks.

content samples from each oil and NGL

of assembled pipes, spheroids, columns,

handling and

of three shifts, and every shift, take

The industrial spot has risen on the

process.

en decades, and within it, stands the

shipping, as well as

data from on-site lab analysis samples

desert's horizon for more than sev-

preparing oil to meet

A predictive Aramco algorithm uses

facility, Abqaiq Plants.

cess parameters to maximize energy

world's largest crude oil stabilization

specified customer

to automatically adjust multiple pro-

From far-off distances, treated crude

process controls also detect any energy

requirements.

efficiency. In real-time, the advanced

tional pressure, and some pumping

advise corrective action.

propelled by emissions-free gravita-

abnormality, pinpoint root causes, and

assistance, flows through an extensive

network of pipelines into the plant's

Within the site's Distributed Control

massive engineering marvels.

System building, operators monitor

Last month, Abqaiq Plants became the third Aramco facility added to the World Economic Forum's prestigious Global Lighthouse Network, and

24/7 how well technology is imple-

At Abqaiq, people, technology, and

menting the algorithm's techniques.

Abqaiq Plants cogeneration system.

a history going back to 1947, fuse to-

Distributed Control System operator Ahmad M. Suwayyid and supervising operator Mohammad A. Zahrani monitor a screen showing the advanced

process controls for the oil processing plant's south stabilizers.

gether to shape a thoroughly modern

"The algorithm may decide less steam

stabilization heartland. Deep industrial

is required to stabilize a particular oil,"

Unused energy is a waste of

"We achieve optimum efficiency

roots have seeded a thinking operation-

gas-oil separation plant - flows into

Three giant facilities at Abqaiq - oil

tive thinking by both people and tech-

energy efficiency, and flaring mitiga-

says supervising operator Mohammad

precious resources, and Abqaiq's

with Abqaiq's cogeneration sys-

al culture, and high on the precinct's

Abqaiq, it is still mixed with various

processing, natural gas liquids (NGL),

nology.

tion.

A. Zahrani.

cogeneration system captures the

tem," says supervising operator

thoughtful list are actions toward an

kinds of light and sour gases.

and utilities - work together to stabi-

most out of every consumed cubic

Mohammad A. Zahrani. "All the

even lighter environmental footprint.

also prepares the oil to meet Aramco's

lize oil, and capture its valuable associ-

It takes exceptional teamwork to op-

Analysis, like safely running one

"Using less steam means less energy,

foot of gas.

manufacturer's upgrades are put

Keeping customers happy

Stabilized oil is piped on to Ras Tan-

the team.

and financial costs.

has worked at Abqaiq Plants for 23

cy from cogeneration requires

during late summer when our

Stabilization not only separates these

ated gases for useful products.

erate an oil and gas facility, and tech-

pump instead of two, collectively add

and less energy means a lower environ-

into our cogeneration systems, and

gases from the oil for safe piping, but

nology is welcomed as a member on

up to big reductions in GHG emissions,

mental footprint," adds Zahrani, who

Gaining the best thermal efficien-

we particularly watch its operation

When treated crude - oil from a

customers' specified requirements.

es go for further processing at other

provides a helping hand to enhance

Clicking on mitigation

years.

monitoring of the fuel supply, and

foggy weather can make them

ura and Jubail on the East Coast, and

Aramco methane among lowest

Yanbu' in the west, while the light gas-

Alongside Abqaiq's workforce, data

ambient temperature.

sensitive."

sions.

complete final gas separation, while

utility facility's three generators. The

drivers is currently being replaced

Aramco plants, and the NGL is sent to

safety, efficiency, and importantly,

Abqaiq's oil processing facility's

More with less

with a new steam compression train.

Flaring

Human and machine team up

At the "Ghawar Intelligence Center"

the NGL facility compresses gas in

facility also supplies steam, treated wa-

Ras Tanura.

mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emis-

spheroids and stabilizer columns use

It takes energy to make energy, and

gravity, heat, and compression to

Abqaiq's power comes mainly from the

site's NGL combustion gas turbine

minimization

towering steel forest is smart collabora-

building, artificial intelligence sensors,

compression

trains, and passes it

instrument air - used to control valves

rather than gas, will primarily fuel the

Humming silently around Abqaiq's

inside Abqaiq's main administration

ter from 16 reverse osmosis units, and

The significant switch means steam,

advanced analytics, and machine learn-

- from two steam-driven and three

turbine, bringing substantive reduc-

Flaring is a safety mitigation activ-

ing click together to present a digital

motor-driven compressors.

tion in energy consumption and GHG

ity, burning off gases to maintain

summary across all Aramco's Southern

emissions.

proper pressure.

Area Oil Operations (SAOO).

Lowering energy intensity - a mea-

sure of how much energy a facility

"Abqaiq Plants has operated for many

As far back as the 1970s, Aramco

Gathering all SAOO data together

consumes to meet its production re-

years next to the Abqaiq community,

introduced a program to signifi-

means figuring out strategic actions for

quirements - at industrial facilities like

where our families and friends live,"

cantly reduce the amount of gas

Abqaiq has a big energy conservation

Zahrani noted.

the company flares.

impact, and since 2015, the site has im-

proved its energy intensity by 20%.

"It is our responsibility to take care of

Abqaiq Plants has two elevated

the plant to always make sure we op-

flares, and like all Aramco facilities,

Upgrading older

equipment can

erate safely, and this is best for people

its flare system is connected to the

enhance their efficiency. One of the

and the environment."

company's corporate

flaring monitoring

system at the Dhahran

Operators provide a front-line check on fugitive leaks, and supervising operator Mohammad

The current replacement of this Abqaiq Plants'

headquarters, where

all flaring events are

NGL combustion gas turbine driver with a new

A. Zahrani checks valves at Abqaiq Plants cogeneration system.

steam compression train will bring substantive

measured and moni-

reductions in energy consumption and

tored.

In the Abqaiq Plants cogeneration

expertise as its global warming

greenhouse gas emissions.

plant, supervising operator Mo-

potential is significantly higher than

Abqaiq flares are

hammad A. Zahrani uses a hand-

that of carbon dioxide.

equipped with assisted

held methane analyzer to check for

smokeless flare tip

possible leaks of methane and

At Abqaiq, a drone, methane

technology, which

volatile gases.

analyzer, MX4 gas detector, and

helps mitigate emis-

low emission level sensors are

sions even further.

Natural gas, a lower carbon

being used to detect and quantify

energy source, consists primarily of

methane emissions.

methane, which is just one carbon

One of Abqaiq's

molecule surrounded by four

With a 2020 upstream methane

two elevated flares.

hydrogen molecules (CH₄).

intensity of 0.06%, Aramco's

upstream methane emissions

Control of fugitive methane

intensity is among the lowest in the

emissions requires thoughtful

industry.

October 20, 2021 the arabian sun

6 company news

Aramco Team Series moves to New York

Old Westbury, New York - Women's golf took center stage last week as the newest tournament format kicked off in the U.S. with the Aramco Team Series (ATS)-NY,Oct. 14-16,on Long Island.

The event, which included games in London and Spain earlier this year, concludes next month in Jiddah. Associated sideline activities will be hosted to highlight Saudi Arabia's diversity, culture, and heritage.

Jessica Korda's team, with Ladies Euro- pean Tour (LET) players Karolin Lampert and Lina Boqvist and amateur player Al- exandra O'Laughlin, won the team event, while British golfer Charley Hull won the individual prize.

During ATS-NY, ATS ambassador Anna Nordqvist, winner of the 2021 Women's British Open, played on a four-person team that included Ahmed A. Al Subaey, vice president for Marketing, Sales, and Supply Planning. Other teams were composed similarly, with three pros and one amateur - an innovative take on golf that brings a different kind of energy to the course.

HE Yasir O. Al Rumayyan, chairman of Aramco's Board of Directors and governor of the Public Investment Fund, also attended the tournament.

vance in their profession.

"We hope the Aramco Team Series inspires generations of women and girls to follow their dreams and achieve their full potential - whether in golf or any other discipline," said Al Subaey. "The series is designed to elevate the standing and the profile of women's golf in Saudi Arabia and around the world, and to encourage more women of all ages and abilities to take up the sport."

	Left: Winners of the Team event, Jessica
	Korda, Alexandra O'Laughlin, Karolin
	Lampert, and Lina Boqvist hold their trophy.
	Top: Charley Hull, winner of the individual
	event, kisses her trophy.
tive and teamed up with nonprofit Girls	hosted events.
on the Green Tee to empower girls and
women through golf. Driving Force am-	"We have business relationships in
bassador Rania Biltagi, Aramco Americas	the United States that go back decades,
Public Affairs director, said, "Thanks to	back to the founding of our company
the Aramco Team Series, we have been	even, and this event - with its unique
given the opportunity to support organi-	approach - showed them a new side of
zations like this that are having such an	Aramco," said Rakkan M. Trabulsi, presi-
impact on the lives of girls and women."	dent of Saudi Petroleum Inc.
The golf tournament was especially	Spectators at the event crisscrossed the
meaningful as it drew together custom-	golf course following the game while

The new series adds four new tourna-
ments to the LET, giving women golfers	During the series in New York, the se-
additional venues to compete and ad-	ries launched the Driving Force initia-

Alfaraj to represent Saudi Arabia

ers and close Aramco partners, some of	also spending time at exhibits dedicated
whom played in the event as amateurs	to Aramco's sustainability and diversity
and others who joined the company at	efforts, e.g., the art and culture of Ithra.

in Davis Cup Asia tournament

By Scott Baldauf

Saudi Arabia's top-ranked tennis play- er, Aramcon Abdullah M. Alfaraj, recently won the Torneo Tennis Planet Ve- rano tournament in Madrid, Spain, held from Aug. 9-12. The tournament was part of a training camp in preparation for the upcoming Davis Cup Asia team tournament, to be held in Bahrain from Oct. 18-24. The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's ten- nis, it is often described as the "World Cup of Tennis." It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is held annually for teams from competing coun- tries.

As a member of the Saudi national team at the Davis Cup, Alfaraj and three other top Saudi teammates will be competing against other national teams across Asia. The top three national teams from the tournament will then advance to the next stage, in a Davis Cup tournament to be played next year.

As a member of Al Salam Club in Awamiyah, Alfaraj led the team to win

its second Saudi National Tennis League for the second year in a row. The team event was played throughout the year in Jiddah, Dammam, and Taif. Alfaraj also came out on top in the Saudi Ranking Tennis Tournament held in Taif from July 1-3.

What makes Alfaraj most proud, he said, is the opportunity to represent the Kingdom on the international stage.

"It is a feeling that nothing else can replace," said Alfaraj, a drilling engineer in the Drilling Technical Depart- ment. "I feel immense pride and responsibility at the same time in representing my country, and

I feel that I am up for it and ready to handle the huge pres-

sure that comes

with it."

Alfaraj has a number of key victories under his belt after nearly 25 years of playing tennis. Encouraged by his father, he began tennis lessons at the age of 5, together with his older brother Ali in Al Salam Club. By the age of 10, Alfaraj had won his first tournament, and by 11, he was invited to join the National Junior Tennis Team, with whom he played for another seven years.

While Alfaraj's success has its roots in the support he has received from his family, it has equally depended on the rigorous practice schedule he main- tains. After a full day of work, Alfaraj heads out to practice five or six times per week, with each practice lasting one

and a half to three hours.

"My father was a big fan of the sport; he used to play tennis in universi- ty," Alfaraj said. "He encouraged us to play and took us every day to practice. My family's support has the biggest

effect on my career. I wouldn't have achieved anything without them."

Alfaraj is excited about the Kingdom's new emphasis on healthy lifestyles and sport, through the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative that was initiated by HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "There has been such a big change in society; there has been a significant increase in the amateur-level practice of sports, which is one of the objectives of the vi- sion," Alfaraj said. "There is much more support for sports in the Kingdom, from top to bottom. As top athletes, we have the power to inspire the community to engage in sports, and as a country, we will be able to prepare elite athletes to be among the top in the world."

Sports are important to society, Alfaraj said. "The goal is to promote physical, social well-being and a healthy lifestyle. Another reason is national pride. Winning a gold medal in an international sports competition like the Olympics is a great source for national pride, and raising the Saudi flag in front of the whole world is an amazing feeling."