Refiners await surge of Middle East exports after new start-ups

The start-up of new super-refineries in the Middle East is set to flood Europe's markets with middle distillates

Just months after Saudi Arabia's new Jubail refinery reached its full capacity, two new facilities at Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, and at Ruwais, United Arab Emirates (UAE), have moved into start-up. The three super-refineries, with a combined capacity of 1.2 million barrels a day (b/d), are all designed to maximise middle distillates production - and much of their diesel and jet-fuel will be seeking markets in Europe. The three new refineries are the first start-ups in a new wave of Middle East refinery construction which could see regional capacity rise by as much as a third by 2019. Petroleum Economist's most recent refinery construction survey identified 3.1m b/d of new capacity either under con