Kuwait looking to natural gas, nuclear options

Kuwait is considering an import terminal for liquefied natural gas, gas imports from Iran and Iraq and nuclear power to help it match soaring demand for electricity, its energy minister said yesterday.

As consumers crank up air conditioning units in the summer, power demand could reach as much as 10,000MW, equivalent to Kuwait’s power capacity at the moment, he said. The country aims to add another 1500MW of capacity by the summer to meet peak demand, Sheikh Ali added.
Kuwait also needed a fourth oil refinery, he said.
But bids from companies competing to build the planned 615,000 bpd Zour refinery were very expensive, he added.

Sheikh Ali said he would meet with investment banks Morgan Stanley and Lazard soon to discuss the results of their review into a controversial $8.5bn plan to boost the country’s oil output.
He said he hoped that there would be progress on the scheme, known as Project Kuwait, before the end of the year.
At least two oil majors had confirmed they were still interested in the project, he added. The project has been under discussion since the early 1990s, but opposition figures in parliament have said there was no reason to boost output with state coffers fattened by high oil prices.

Gulf Times