MWG Enterprises, the Fort Worth-based energy development company, Patel Family Office and PWS, an associate company of Saudi Arabia’s AHQ Group, have launched Mera Oil, a US-Saudi private consortium, and entered the final stage of selecting a host location for a planned $5 billion integrated refinery and energy export corridor.
After three years of
evaluating sites across the Gulf, the consortium has shortlisted three GCC
locations outside the Strait of Hormuz.
Discussions have
advanced over the past two years, with a preferred host expected to be selected
by the end of 2026.
The consortium remains
open to alternative proposals that meet its infrastructure, resilience and
development requirements.
The proposed project
will feature a 200,000-barrel-per-day refinery, deepwater port connectivity,
large-scale crude and refined product storage, and marine export facilities.
Designed as a
route-resilient energy hub, the development aims to strengthen regional
manufacturing, logistics, technical expertise and energy security.
“Three years of
evaluation across the region and two years of detailed engagement with three
outstanding locations have brought us to a clear decision point. The sponsor
partnership is assembled, the development concept and capital strategy are
defined, and we are now choosing our host. The jurisdiction that moves
decisively with us in the coming months stands to secure a major new
downstream, storage and energy-export platform,” said Marc Gunderson,
Founder of MWG Enterprises.
The Phase One
investment will incorporate energy-efficient refining technologies,
emissions-control systems, and potential future capabilities including
sustainable aviation fuel co-processing and carbon management.
A pre-feasibility
study covering refinery design, logistics, capital requirements and execution
planning is already at an advanced stage.
Once a host
jurisdiction is confirmed, the project will proceed to detailed site
assessments and engineering design, with mechanical completion targeted for the
end of 2029, followed by commissioning and commercial operations.
The development aligns
with Gulf efforts to expand refining, storage and export capacity.
The consortium plans
to focus on producing high-specification middle distillates, including
ultra-low sulphur diesel and jet fuel, for selected international markets.
Abdulmalik Alqahtani, AHQ Group CEO, said the project would support long-term industrial growth in the region.
“Expanding domestic value addition remains one of the Gulf’s most important industrial opportunities. More than seven decades of industrial work across the Kingdom have taught us what a project of this kind should leave behind for its host: jobs, local suppliers, technical skill and industrial capacity that endures, in step with the region’s national visions. We look forward to concluding this process with the jurisdiction best placed to move quickly and deliver,” said Alqahtani.
The project is
expected to occupy approximately 1,200 to 1,500 acres of port-connected
industrial land and could create up to 3,000 direct jobs and around 15,000
indirect and induced employment opportunities during construction and
operations.
“This is
multigenerational infrastructure, and it has to be structured to institutional
standards from the outset: sound governance, a balanced capital structure built
to hold for decades, and a transparent partnership with the host government.
Patel Family Office is engaging sovereign and institutional partners who share
that outlook,” said Lakshmi Narayanan, Vice Chair of Patel Family Office.
Mera Oil is also
progressing discussions with feedstock suppliers and expects financing to
include sponsor equity, sovereign and institutional investment, project
finance, export-credit support and Shariah-compliant funding structures. -OGN/TradeArabia News Service