Middle East downstream news

Gulf crude exports fall 82% from January to June; Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar record zero exports as Strait of Hormuz remains severely constrained, Wood Mackenzie has reported.

The Middle East is poised to dominate global methanol capacity additions by 2030, driven primarily by its access to abundant and cheap natural gas, which is a primary feedstock for methanol production, GlobalData has reported.

Fluor Corp. has announced that it has been selected by Gulf Petrochemical Industries Co. to execute the front-end engineering and design for a new aromatics facility located in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Kent has announced the signing of Long-Term Agreements and Project Management Consultancy agreements with Aramco, further establishing the company’s presence in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Fluor has been selected by Aramco as a Programme Management Consultancy (PMC) contractor under a Long-Term Agreement (LTA) to support its global capital projects portfolio.

The crisis in the Middle East should be a wake-up for the global chemical industry to end its dependence on fossil fuels for feedstocks and consider sustainable alternatives, according to Scottish green chemicals firm Celtic Renewables.

On 28 April 2026, the UAE announced that it was leaving OPEC, effective on 1 May, which has reduced the group's global share of crude oil production and capacity.

GlobalData has reported that low-cost feedstock and developed infrastructure will support PVC capacity additions in the Middle East.

Wood Mackenzie has forecasted Brent averaging US$78/bbl in 2027 and potentially easing to US$70/bbl by 4Q27, following a US-Iran MoU that has shifted market sentiment away from a prolonged Strait of Hormuz closure.

Saipem has been awarded a new onshore contract for the Uthmaniyah Gas Compression Plant project in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.