The refining capacity in the Middle East is expected to increase by around 17 per cent from 11.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2020 to 13.6 million bpd by 2024, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Supported by its Al Zour project, Kuwait is expected to lead the refinery capacity growth in the Middle East over the next four years, with the anticipated addition of 615,000 bpd contributing to around 31% of the region’s total growth.

This is expected to be closely followed by Saudi Arabia, with contributions of 24%, stated GlobalData in its report ‘Refining Industry Outlook in Middle East to 2024.

Of the total capacity additions in the region, 1.5 million bpd is expected to come from planned projects, while the remaining 0.5 million bpd is likely to come from the expansions of active/operational projects.

Amareswari Kanaparthi, the oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, said: "Kuwait leads the refinery capacity growth in the Middle East through the planned Al-Zour project, one of the biggest upcoming refineries in the world."