Khaberni - The Saudi Ministry of Finance stated on Tuesday that the first phase of the Jafurah Gas Plant, owned by Saudi Aramco, has been completed and production has started with a capacity of 450 million cubic feet per day.
In a statement about the 2026 budget, the ministry included this achievement among those accomplished in 2025.
Jafurah is likely the largest shale gas project outside the United States, and is expected to reach sustainable production of two billion cubic feet per day by 2030.
Amin Nasser, CEO of Aramco, said that the first phase of the project is on track to be completed by the end of this year.
Last month, Amin Nasser described the Jafurah project as the crown jewel in the company's portfolio.
Earlier this year, Aramco raised $11 billion from a lease and leaseback agreement for the Jafurah gas processing facilities with a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners, associated with BlackRock.
The Jafurah Project, which has a cost of $100 billion and an estimated crude volume of about 229 trillion standard cubic feet, is a central pivot in Aramco's ambitions to become a major global player in the natural gas sector and to enhance its production capacity.
The project's production will help conserve crude oil for export that is currently used for domestic power generation.
Aramco's profits declined by 2.3% in the third quarter of this year due to falling crude oil and petroleum product prices, but performance improved compared to the previous quarter with increased production.
