Arab oil projects still rely on international finance

A recently published specialized economic study said International Banks will continue to finance oil, gas and petrochemical projects in Arab states, due to the limited financial capabilities of Arab banks.
The study prepared by Director of Projects Management Department in the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), Abdullah Ibrahim, and published in the last edition of the OAPEC quarterly magazine indicated that this reliance on the international banks generates several risks resulting from the Banks' evaluation of the situation in the region.

The study estimated the expected investments in the gas, refining and the petrochemical projects in the Arab states during 2002-2006 at $ 63.5 bn, with $ 36.5 bn for natural gas projects, about 20 bn for the petrochemical projects and the rest for refining projects. The biggest rate of these investments is distributed on Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Kuwait, the UAE and Oman, added the study.
On the other hand, the study explained that the expected capital needed to maintain and increase the capacity of oil production in the Arab states during the period of 2002-2006 is about $ 49 bn, as $ 27.8 bn are the cost of maintaining the present energy, while the rest is the cost of increasing the production capacity. <<P>About $ 5.5 bn will be used to rehabilitate and elevate the capacity of production in Iraq during the stage of reconstruction.
APICORP was established in 1975, with its headquarters in Khubar and aims to finance the oil industries in its various forms. The company was established with the participation of 10 Arab governments.