Exclusive: Aoun Demands NOC Head Provide Documents Regarding the Purchase of 9 Power Generation Units

The Economic Sada newspaper has exclusively obtained a letter from the Minister of Oil and Gas to the President of the Oil Corporation regarding his request for documents related to the project to purchase 9 power generation units.

In the correspondence, Aoun stated that the Ministry of Oil and Gas received a copy of a letter from a member of the committee of owners of the Oasis Oil Company, acting on behalf of the foreign partner TotalEnergies. The letter was addressed to the chairman of the management committee of the Oasis Oil Company regarding the project to purchase nine (9) power generation units, each with a capacity of (32MW). It notifies him that the coalition of partners (Second Party) supported the operator’s efforts to purchase only two (2) units based on the fast-track model and according to the proposed specifications. The decision to purchase the remaining seven units was postponed until after the specific workshop due to the lack of urgent justifications, as discussed and approved by the operator in the periodic technical meeting for the year 2023. Consequently, he objects to the recent intention of the operator to proceed with the purchase without the approval of the Ownership Committee.

He added that the expected contract value is subject to the approval of the Ownership Committee according to Article (B.3) of the Participation Agreement. It has been noted that the procurement procedures for purchasing the two remaining units were done through a limited tender with the approval of the National Oil Corporation.

Aoun also mentioned that these non-standard equipment used to supply energy for various production operations are usually procured directly from specialized factories to ensure quality and subsequent maintenance. Interestingly, the procurement of the two units was done through direct commissioning to a non-manufacturing supplier based in Houston, USA, named “SIRRA,” with the approval of the National Oil Corporation. There is no information available about the identity and experience of this company in supplying such equipment, and the Oasis Oil Company has no previous dealings with it. The Oasis Oil Company had planned to purchase all units from this supplier two years ago; therefore, are they stored with the supplier without finding a buyer?

According to the letter, in addition to these non-standardized equipment, on which the country depends to supply the necessary energy for various production operations, there has always been progress in the gas sector in the country that can be repeated. Last year, the Italian oil and gas giant Eni signed an agreement with the National Oil Corporation to invest around 8 billion dollars to produce approximately 850 million cubic feet per day from two offshore gas fields in the Mediterranean.

Aoun concluded by stating that, based on the mentioned facts and pointing out similar violations in the handling of other projects, there seems to be a flaw in the management of projects and purchases of the Oasis Oil Company. The National Oil Corporation bears responsibility for these violations, confirmed by the foreign partner in this letter. Due to your non-compliance with informing us about such decisions despite our repeated requests and your refusal even to attend our periodic meetings between the ministry and the board of the National Oil Corporation, through which information is provided and activities and policies for implementing various sector programs are discussed. Consequently, we receive various correspondences from the Ministry of Oil and Gas containing information that questions the principles of transparency and adherence to the prevailing legislation regulating the oil sector. We are compelled to address you to clarify the truth and ensure the integrity of the procedures.

In conclusion, Aoun requested the study on which the purchase of 9 new power generation units was based, and how the supplier “SIRRA” was chosen over other factories and suppliers in the global market. He also asked for the negotiation (commissioning) file that led to the purchase of two (2) power generation units from “SIRRA” and the limited tender file that led to the purchase of 7 power generation units. Additionally, he questioned the insistence on bypassing the Ownership Committee’s approval to purchase the 7 power generation units, especially with a prior agreement between the operator and the partner to postpone the purchase until after a specialized workshop for further discussion and determination of the appropriate number and timing of the purchase.