DAMMAM — Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE) has set a new milestone in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with its Drill Bit Manufacturing Plant in Dhahran producing over 10,000 drills bits since 2011. While about 36 percent of the polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) drill bits are supplied to Saudi Aramco, the rest, are exported to 41 countries across the world, including the US, China, India, Russia, Argentina, UK, Norway, Kenya, Egypt, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Italy, Australia, among others, underlining BHGE’s commitment to strengthening localized manufacturing and boosting exports in line with Saudi Vision 2030.

The Drill Bill Manufacturing facility has also set other milestones with 47 Saudi-based suppliers, including small and medium enterprises, supporting the plant’s operations – thus creating a robust local supply chain. The facility has achieved 73 percent Saudization highlighting BHGE’s focus on promoting Saudi talents and creating high-quality jobs for talented Nationals. Drawing on advanced manufacturing technologies, BHGE plans to increase the production capacity by 50 percent next year, having already set a production record of 50 drill bits ‘Made in Saudi’ weekly for 13 consecutive weeks. The capacity expansion will help double the workforce at the facility and boost exports to 75 percent of the total production.

Rami Qasem, President & CEO, BHGE, Middle East, North Africa, Turkey & India, said: “The production milestone achieved by our Drill Bit Manufacturing Facility in Dhahran is a strong statement on our localization commitment; we have been partnering in the energy sector of the Kingdom for over 80 years and we are evolving and growing in line with the growth aspirations of Saudi Arabia. Today, under Saudi Vision 2030, the emphasis is on building localized manufacturing competencies, creating jobs for Saudi nationals and boosting exports – all functions that are served by the facility. Furthermore, the facility’s growth complements Saudi Aramco’s in-Kingdom Total Value Add program by strengthening local value supply chains of Saudi SMEs.”

Nick Nawfal, VP &CEO, BHGE, Saudi Arabia & Bahrain, added: “The Kingdom’s first commercially viable oil discovery – the Prosperity Well, Dammam No 7 – was drilled using BHGE drill bits, which were imported from the US. Today, these drill bits are not only manufactured in the Kingdom but also exported globally. Over the years, we have been supporting Saudi Aramco’s mission to be the leading supplier of hydrocarbons in the world, and through our strong localized presence – with manufacturing and service facilities in the Kingdom – we will continue to serve our partners, delivering efficient and timely support.”

The Drill Bit Manufacturing Plant in Dhahran was built as part of BHGE’s localization strategy – making it the first company to completely manufacture drill bits in the Kingdom. The 2,500-square meter facility is also the first facility in the Middle East to fully manufacture drill bits from raw material to finished product regionally. With an overall of 80 employees in manufacturing, sales and operation, 50 per cent of all engineering and sales teams being Saudi Nationals and over 70% of the manufacturing staff being Saudi nationals, the facility has achieved high standards of safety at work with zero lost time incidents reported for three consecutive years.

As a key player in the Kingdom’s oil and gas supply chain ecosystem, BHGE has over 2,600 employees in Saudi Arabia. BHGE has a strong local presence marked by localized oilfield equipment manufacturing, and has tripled the capacity of the manufacturing facility to meet the local demand of pressure control equipment, and with capability to repair and re-certify BOPs. — SG