Riyadh – Mubasher: Oil giant Saudi Aramco is expected to start operating Jazan Refinary, one of three large refineries of petroleum in Saudi Arabia, by the end of 2019, Al Eqtisadiah newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Aramco, the world's largest oil producer, might operate Pengerang Refining & Petrochemical (PRefChem) in Malaysia by the end of this year.

PRefChem is a strategic alliance between Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS), the national oil company of Malaysia, and Saudi Aramco.

Aramco will also open Hyundai Oilbank refinery in South Korea during the same year, the newspaper said.

In April, Saudi Aramco has signed a deal with Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings to acquire a 17% stake, or 41.66 million shares, in Hyundai Oilbank for $1.2 billion.

Accordingly, Saudi Aramco will be the second largest shareholder in Hyundai Oilbank, followed by Hyundai Motor Co. with 4.3%, while Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings will retain a 74.1% stake.

Aramco, the world’s most profitable company, noted that the refinery capacity will reach 6.3 million barrels per day.