Saudi Aramco has started production at its $100 billion Jafurah unconventional gas project, marking a major milestone in Saudi Arabia’s long-term energy expansion plans. The development follows the completion of Phase One construction of the project’s gas processing facilities.
The initial phase includes a gas plant with a capacity of 450 million cubic feet per day. With operations now underway, Aramco has begun producing light oil, known as condensate, from the field. This represents the first export of liquids from Jafurah, which is primarily designed to boost natural gas supply.
Initial condensate cargoes have been sold to Asian buyers, with deliveries expected between late February and early March 2026. In the early stages, Aramco plans to market between four and six cargoes per month, with each shipment estimated at about 500,000 barrels.
Jafurah is the largest liquid-rich shale gas project in the Middle East, holding an estimated 229 trillion standard cubic feet of raw gas and about 75 billion barrels of condensate. While condensate production has begun, the project’s main focus remains gas output, which Aramco aims to increase to around two billion cubic feet per day by 2030.
The project is central to Saudi Arabia’s strategy to meet rising domestic energy demand and reduce the use of crude oil for power generation. By expanding gas supply, the Kingdom plans to free up more crude oil for export and support industrial growth.
Jafurah also supports Saudi Arabia’s net-zero emissions target for 2060 by replacing more carbon-intensive fuels with natural gas. The project relies on advanced hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling technologies and is expected to attract total investments exceeding $100 billion.
In 2025, Aramco signed a 20-year, $11 billion financing deal with a consortium led by BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners. A newly established subsidiary, Jafurah Midstream Gas Company, holds the midstream assets, with Aramco owning 51 percent and the investor group holding the remaining stake.
Beyond energy security, the Jafurah project is expected to deliver significant economic benefits, contributing up to $20 billion annually to Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product and creating thousands of jobs, in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives.
