Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) on 23 May signed a $1.2bn contract with South Korea’s SK Engineering & Construction covering the second phase of a program to upgrade oil and production facilities. The 25-month project covers the removal of underground oil and gas pipelines, and their relaying overground at 10 oil gathering centers (GCs 1, 2, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 19, 20 and 22), along with gas booster station BS 170. According to KOC Chairman Faruq al-Zanki, in a company statement, the accord will help “firstly by increasing KOC production capacity, secondly by improving the company health, safety and environmental practices, thirdly by enhancing the production-associated water handling capabilities, and fourthly by decreasing gas-flaring.” Last April, KOC awarded a $680mn contract to the UK’s Petrofac for the modernization of GCs 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 21 and 23 – together with BS 140 and 150 (MEES, 2 May). The two-part upgrade program, Mr Zanki said, would “set KOC for the next 20 years, providing a completely new infrastructure and adding significantly to KOC production capabilities.” Kuwait’s long-term aim is to increase its output capacity from 2.6mn b/d to 4mn b/d by 2020.