President and CEO of Saudi Aramco has hailed the company's accomplishments of the past year and said it discharged fully and faithfully the responsibilities entrusted to it. In his first conference call during the operating year 2005, he said the company in 2004 had expanded significantly its operations in both size and scope. "We can look back on the accomplishments of the past year with a sense of pride." "Last year's events thrust Saudi Aramco and the Kingdom into the limelight of international attention to a greater extent than ever before. 2004 was a year during which the Kingdom's capability to meet the energy needs of the world, through Saudi Aramco, was questioned and tested. As we have always done in the past, we met and exceeded what was expected of us, and we will continue to do so, God willing, in the future. The year began with the inauguration by Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz, of the Haradh Gas Plant, demonstrating that Saudi Aramco is steadfastly committed to meeting the fuel and feedstock needs of Saudi Arabia's growing industrial sector. Just two months later, Saudi Aramco partnered with international petroleum companies to inaugurate the search of the under-explored parts of the Rub' Al-Khali for additional non-associated gas reserves. Our hopes are high that this ambitious program will be met with success. In another milestone, Saudi Aramco announced agreements with Sumitomo Chemical, one of the world's most innovative and technologically advanced chemical companies, to study and confirm the feasibility of developing the Rabigh Refinery into an integrated refinery and petrochemical complex. This project will solidify the Kingdom's position as a regional leader in both refining and petrochemical manufacturing. Further cementing our ties with Japan, Saudi Aramco increased its global assets by agreeing to become over time a 15 percent owner of Showa Shell, the respected and successful Japanese refining and marketing company." --MORE 1502 Local Time 1202 GMT
