The complete paper discusses Saudi Arabia’s progress in gas flaring, the measures the government has taken, and how operators have adapted. It also identifies many lessons learned and technological solutions that could be scaled up on a national or a corporate level to reduce gas flaring to achieve zero routine flaring targets, especially in cases where the state owns hydrocarbon assets and leases them to private operators.
History of Gas Flaring in Saudi Arabia
Following the discovery in 1948 of Ghawar, Saudi Arabia’s largest oil field, oil production in the country increased and more associated gas was produced and flared. The national oil company, Saudi Aramco, had no interest in capturing gas produced from its oil operations. No local or regional market for it existed, and exporting the gas would have required substantial infrastructure investments.
