'Solar energy project helped to produce oil in Um Qudair field'

Minister of Oil, Minister of Electricity and Water Essam Al-Marzouq presents a memento to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah patronized and attended the opening ceremony of Al-Ahmadi Hospital yesterday. His Highness the Amir was received at the hospital by Minister of Oil, Minister of Electricity and Water Essam Al-Marzouq, CEO of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) Nizar Al-Adsani, CEO of Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) Jamal Abdulaziz Jaafar, in addition to a score of senior oil officials in the country.

The opening ceremony was attended by His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Speaker of the National Assembly Marzouq Al-Ghanem, Sheikh Jaber Al-Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Sheikh Faisal Al-Saud Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah, His Highness Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Mohammad Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Amiri Diwan Minister Sheikh Ali Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Anas Al-Saleh, as well as senior officials of the state, the army, the police, Kuwait National Guard (KNG), and Kuwait Fire Service Directorate (KFSD).

During his speech to the event, Minister Marzouq thanked His Highness the Amir for his guidance and continuous support to the oil sector, saying that the opening of the new Al-Ahmadi Hospital also displayed the leadership's keenness on bolstering health services in the country.

The minister affirmed that Al-Ahmadi city was the location in which Kuwait began harnessing the power of petroleum, which contributed to the development of the country as a whole. The minister touched on recent achievements in Kuwait, revealing that under the orders and guidelines of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah, Kuwait began to look into ways to use renewable energy.

One of the chief achievements in this regard was the Sedra 500 solar energy project, which helped to produce oil in Um Qudair field west of Kuwait, said the Marzouq, adding that the Kuwaiti decision to seek alternative energy resources aimed at protecting the environment of the country. Efforts for environment protection led to the decrease of the burning of natural gas from 17 percent in 2005 to around one percent in 2017, said the state official.

Meanwhile, Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) CEO Jaafar also delivered a speech during the event, welcoming His Highness the Amir and the Kuwaiti leadership to the Hospital. Jaafar affirmed that the medical facility, owned by the KOC, would garner to the needs of some 120,000 employees of the company who are the backbone of the oil industry.  He also stressed that the hospital was in line with the industry's 2030 development strategy. The new Al-Ahmadi Hospital is constructed on an area of 380,000 square meters with new facilities and areas costing around KD 94 million, said Jaafar. - KUNA