News Summary Report Wednesday/ June 25, 2019
External Affairs
Kuwait will not participate at US-led Bahrain meeting, diplomatic sources The Kuwaiti government will not take part at the economic workshop entitled
"from peace to prosperity" hosted by Bahrain today to discuss economic prospects of Palestinian people and the region's nations that could lead to a peace between the Palestinian and Israeli sides, Al-Rai reported citing diplomatic sources. the Kuwaiti parliament on Monday urged the government not to attend the conference, and called on the government to take a decisive stand and boycott these talks. "We oppose the whole purpose of the meeting that serves to inhibit Arab and Islamic rights over the occupied Palestinian territories," the Kuwaiti lawmakers were cited as saying in a statement. The lawmakers went on to say the Bahrain conference is an attempt to "legitimize" the Israeli occupation, a measure strongly condemned by the Kuwaiti people and government. US President Donald Trump's administration has described the talks as an effort to boost the Palestinian economy as part of a broader peace plan to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Commenting on statement, Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Sabah on Monday restated Kuwait's principled stance in the support of the Palestinian people.
Speaking at the parliament session yesterday, the minister rejected any doubts about the Kuwaiti government’s position on the Palestinian cause. “Kuwait is above all consideration and we know exactly how to implement its foreign policy,”
the minister asserted. Al-Khaled asserted Kuwait’s continued support to Palestinians cause, noting that Kuwait will accept whatever the Palestinians accept.
Al-Rai
Domestic Affairs Finance minister grilled for second time
Kuwait Finance Minister Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf will be grilled for a second time this month. He said he received from Parliament Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim Monday a grilling request from MP Mohammad Hayef. Speaking to reporters on sidelines of a parliamentary session, Al-Hajraf explained the interpellation was about two issues: not fulfilling his oath and charging interest on loans taken by pensioners from the social security agency. Hayef had planned to file the grilling on Sunday after the finance minister did not attend a meeting of the financial and economic affairs committee to discuss the issue. He said the interpellation was "a democratic practice" and reaffirmed his commitment to constitution. MP Hayef said Al-Hajraf
"violated the oath and lied on the nation and its MPs." Hayef also argued "no interest should be collected on salary exchange as a return on investment." All Newspapers
Fire Dept., MEW discuss activation of emergency plan
Kuwait Fire Service Directorate’s (KFSD) Director General Lieutenant-General Khaled Al-Mekrad on Monday presided a meeting with the senior officials at the Ministry of Electricity and Water to discuss activation of emergency procedures to protect power plants and other MEW facilities in the country. The meeting was attended by Undersecretary of Ministry of Electricity and Water Eng. Mahmoud Boushehri. During the meeting, the officials tackled precautionary measure for any emergency that may arise due to fire or any other incidents and protecting the safety of workers. All Newspapers
Economy CSB: Inflation in Kuwait up 0.8 % in May
According to data issued by the Central Statistical Bureau (CSB), inflation rates on an annual basis in Kuwait rose by 0.80% in May 2019, compared to the same month in 2018. Inflation rate on a monthly basis rose by 0.18% in May compared to April 2019. Food prices rose by 1.03%, and tobacco and cigarettes rose by 1.08%. Moreover, clothing went up by 0.66% while domestic services dropped 0.52%. Also, home furniture and maintenance rose by 2.14%, health group went up by 2.28% and transportation rose by 1.60%. CSB also noted that telecommunication rose by 5.37%, culture and entertainment went up by 1.82%
and education rose by 1.85%. Restaurants and hotels group saw a drop of 0.17%, while other commodities and services went down by 0.19%. KUNA
Petrofac appoints former KNPC CEO as Kuwait country chai
Pretrofac has appointed Mohammed Ghazi Al-Mutairi to the position of Kuwait country chair. He served as chairman and board member of a number of major companies in the sector, most recently as the chief executive officer of Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC), and was Chairman of the Gulf Downstream Association. The company said in a press release that it reflects Petrofac's role in developing Kuwait’s oil and gas infrastructure and the increased demand the company sees with helping clients expand their upstream and downstream operations. In his role as ambassador in-country, Al-Mutairi will represent Petrofac Group, working closely with the various parties across the entire Petrofac portfolio, in the ongoing delivery and development of the company’s offerings and operations in Kuwait. “We are delighted to welcome Mohammed to Petrofac," said Roberto Bertocco, chief commercial officer. "He has played an important role in shaping Kuwait’s downstream sector, leading the implementation of some of the region’s most complex energy projects. This is a key market where our continued focus is on investing in-country and building capabilities for the future to ensure we’re part of the fabric of Kuwait for many years to come.”
Petrofac has been active in Kuwait’s oil and gas industry since the 1980.
Substantial ongoing projects include KNPC’s Clean Fuels Project, partnering with Samsung and CB&I (now merged with McDermott), to upgrade the Mina Abdullah refinery, creating a facility which operates to high environmental standards and bringing production to 454,000 barrels a day. EPC contracts with Kuwait Oil Company include Gathering Centre 32 (GC32) and the Lower Fars heavy oil project, where operations and maintenance services are also being provided.
http://www.oilreviewmiddleeast.com/industry/former-knpc-ceo-joins-petrofac-as- kuwait-country-chair
