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The multibillion-dollar offshore gas development is moving forward, with multiple EPC packages up for grabs and significant demand expected for corrosion-resistant materials.
Kuwait City – July 23, 2026
Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are pressing ahead with the long-delayed Dorra offshore gas field development, a project that has been stuck in political limbo for decades. The field, located in the Partitioned Neutral Zone between the two countries, is estimated to hold 20 trillion cubic feet of gas and 310 million barrels of oil .
Discovered in 1965, the Dorra field is understood to be the only gas field in the Neutral Zone . Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have been producing oil from the zone since the 1950s, but the gas side has remained largely untapped . Now, with both countries facing growing domestic gas demand and an ambition to free up crude for export, Dorra has become a strategic priority.
Iran claims the field—which it calls Arash—extends into its territorial waters . Tehran has repeatedly warned that unilateral Gulf development would cross "red lines," while Kuwait and Saudi Arabia insist the field lies entirely within their jointly administered offshore zone .
In February 2024, the two countries issued a joint statement reaffirming their claim, following a meeting between Kuwait's Emir and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince . Since then, project momentum has picked up noticeably.
Al-Khafji Joint Operations (KJO), jointly owned by Saudi Aramco subsidiary Aramco Gulf Operations Company and Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) subsidiary Kuwait Gulf Oil Company (KGOC), is leading the offshore development . The project has been divided into four EPC packages:
Package 1 covers seven offshore jackets and intra-field pipelines. Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon has already won this package, valued at an estimated $140-150 million .
Package 2A includes wellhead topsides, flowlines, and umbilicals. Two consortiums have submitted bids—NMDC Energy (UAE) with Hyundai Heavy Industries (South Korea), and Saipem (Italy) with Larsen & Toubro (India) .
Package 2B covers the central gathering platform complex, export pipelines, and cables .
Package 3 is the onshore gas processing facilities, with construction expected in the Al-Zour area .
Bid submission deadlines have been extended multiple times, but KJO is moving forward .
Separately, KGOC is advancing a $3.3 billion onshore gas processing facility to be built near the Al-Zour refinery . The plant will process gas from the Dorra field via pipeline and have capacity to handle up to 632 million cubic feet per day of gas and 88,900 barrels per day of condensates .
Technip Energies has completed front-end engineering and design (FEED) work for the onshore plant . KGOC plans to award technology contracts to Honeywell UOP for acid gas removal and Shell Catalysts & Technologies for sulfur recovery .
A 700,000-square-meter plot has been allocated next to the Al-Zour refinery .
The Dorra development is expected to produce about 1 billion cubic feet of gas per day once operational, split equally between the two countries . Both offshore and onshore facilities will require extensive pressure vessels, heat exchangers, towers, and piping systems capable of handling sour gas and condensate streams.
Kuwait and Saudi operators typically specify integrally clad plate for pressure vessels and heat exchangers in corrosive service—either by roll cladding or explosive cladding, per SA 263, SA 264, or SA 265 specifications . The clad layer is required to be compliant with NACE MR0175/ISO 15156-3 for sour gas service, with minimum shear strength and shear test requirements strictly enforced .
Common clad material combinations for such applications include SA516 Gr.70 with 316L stainless steel for general sour gas, and SA516 with Inconel 825 or 625 where higher chloride resistance or elevated temperatures are factors .
The project scope also includes subsea flowlines, gas gathering pipelines, and export pipelines—all potential applications for clad pipes in sour service environments .
Fugo Tech is a manufacturer of clad plates and machined components for pressure vessels and heat exchangers. Core products include clad tube sheets, clad dish heads, and baffle plates. Complementary materials cover titanium, nickel alloy, and stainless steel. ISO 9001 and PED certified. www.fugo-tech.com | sales@fugo-tech.com.
Fugo Tech is focused on the manufacturing of clad metal plate and distributes the Stainless Steel, Titanium, Nickel Alloy, Zirconium and other non-ferrous metal pipes, fittings, and flanges.
