The largest Arabian Gulf producer that’s not an OPEC member is combining state-run oil investment and refining companies to form a business that spans pumping crude and natural gas to processing and trading fuels.

Government-owned Oman Oil Co. and Oman Oil Refineries & Petroleum Industries Co. named Musab Abdullah Al Mahruqi as chief executive officer of the merged group starting from Dec. 2, a further step in combining their management and operations, according to a joint statement posted on the Twitter account of the refining business.

Key Insights

Merged company will have combined stakes in about 1.1m b/d of refining capacity in Oman, India and Hungary and oil and gas production in Oman Orpic has 222k b/d refining capacity; Oman Oil plans 400k b/d refinery at Duqm; Oman Oil also has stakes in 120k b/d Bharat Oman Refineries facility in India and a holding in Hungarian oil producer and refiner Mol Oman Oil is majority owner of Oman Trading International, which markets fuel and chemicals from Orpic plants and trades crude and refined products Middle East oil producers are developing and expanding refining and petrochemical capacity to earn more profit from their crude by selling higher-value products; state companies are developing trading divisions and expanding abroad to secure markets Oman abuts the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for regional crude exports; country is a member of Gulf Cooperation Council along with Saudi Arabia; also maintains relations with Iran, has plans for pipeline to import Iranian gas Oman can pump about 1m b/d of crude, cooperates with Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers to manage supply and prop up prices; Oman Oil Minister Mohammed Al-Rumhy said this month the producers think market is oversupplied and that they may need to cut output

Get More

As CEO of Orpic from 2010 to 2016, Al Mahruqi consolidated Oman’s two domestic refineries with petrochemical businesses into one company; expanded chemicals production; Al Mahruqi also served as chief investment officer of Oman Oil in 2008 Read the company statement here See Oman’s oil production here