Terminals, pipelines and storage facilities are vital components in Saudi Aramco's day-to-day distribution operations.

The company took on responsibility for domestic petroleum and products distribution in 1993, before which the company's distributions role had been limited to marketing products from the Master Gas System and crude oil to local industry, as well as supplying crude to non-Aramco refineries in the Kingdom.

Saudi Aramco has, since 1993, upgraded the vast distribution network to ensure the steady, reliable flow of refined petroleum products for the benefit of industry and the individual.

Today, the Saudi Aramco distribution system consists of 17 bulk plants and 19 air fuelling units throughout the Kingdom, though growing demand for products is expected to see this figure rise in years to come.

The bulk plants are at the heart of the network, receiving, storing and delivering refined products such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), petrol, kerosene, diesel fuel and jet fuel. The company delivers approximately 700,000 barrels of refined products (gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, kerosene, LPG, fuel oil and asphalt) to some 5,000 bulk customers, and through them meets the needs of millions of customers in the industrial, agricultural, and private sectors.

They are also the distribution points for Saudi Aramco's industrial clients and the petroleum product customers who ensure supply to businesses and individuals.

Distribution Operations controllers ensure that each of Saudi Aramco's bulk plants and air fuelling units are supplied with a sufficient quantity of the appropriate products to satisfy demand.

Every day between 3,000 and 5,000 tanker trucks, operated by more than 200 different contract haulers, transport products between Distribution Operations facilities. Refined products are also transported by rail from the Dhahran Bulk Plant to secondary installations at Al Kharj and Al Hasa. More than 300,000 barrels of refined products are also transferred between bulk plants every day to meet regional needs.

Modernisation of the Distribution Operations network is part of an evolutionary process, though because the distribution network is so large and scattered throughout the country, any attempt to transform the system overnight would potentially disrupt supplies throughout the network.

But steady upgrades have allowed Distribution Operations planners to adapt to changing demand and consumption patterns across Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Aramco also assumes the responsibility for the Kingdom's vital terminal system which is used to ship or receive crude oil, NGL, or refined products.

Terminals exist in Duba, Yanbu', Rabigh, Jeddah, and Jaizan on the Red Sea, and in Ju'aymah and Ras Tanura on the Gulf. These terminals are some of the busiest in the world, with more than 4,000 tankers calling at these facilities annually, and are central to the smooth export of Saudi crude oil and products.

Saudi Aramco is currently renovating the so-called Sea Island No.2 crude oil export terminal offshore Ras Tanura, where a rigorous Test & Inspection (T&I) programme is currently being carried out.

Under the project, all important systems at the terminal - structural, fire, electrical, equipment and accommodation - are being upgraded.

The terminal facility consists of four islands which can load ships of between 50,000 and 500,000 dead weight tonnes. Each island has two berths and can load two ships simultaneously with different grades of crude oil and tanker fuel, according to Saudi Aramco.

At the offshore Ju'aymah Single Point Mooring (SPM) Terminal, meanwhile, a major refurbishment and deployment was recently completed of a Single Point Mooring Buoy, one of six unmanned crude oil and tanker fuel loading facilities at the terminal.

Each loading facility has a floating buoy which supports a 100 tonne turntable and a network of piping and valves. The buoy allows oil and tanker fuel to flow simultaneously from a giant subsea hose system to the buoy chamber without mixing, passing through its top piping and via three strings of floating hoses to a waiting ship.

Unlike conventional oil terminals, such as jetties and sea islands, this offshore terminal has the capacity to simultaneously accommodate and load five supertankers with a flow rate of 130,000 barrels per hour each and under a wide variety of weather conditions.

Because of their design, their heavy use and the harsh offshore environment in which they work, the buoys are taken out every eight years for T&I.

Saudi Aramco regularly refurbishes one of the buoys to original condition.

Last October, after eight years of service, SPM-36 was taken out of the water and taken to the yard at Ju'aymah Pier, where all of its components were inspected to identify damaged structures or parts that were beyond repair.

As expected, this SPM required extensive repair and component replacement. The entire structure and piping were grit-blasted, and the components were dismantled, said Saudi Aramco.

Defective equipment was repaired, and some parts were modified. Some critical parts were reinforced to minimise corrosion. The entire unit finished with corrosion-resistant paint to help prolong its life.

When the T&I was done, a technical committee tested the unit and all its components individually, verifying quality and workmanship.

The unit was geared up for the deployment, which was carried out by a team of qualified maintenance workers and divers with the help of a Saudi Aramco repair barge.