Bahrain King, Saudi Crown Prince Inaugurate new Pipeline

Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and inaugurated a new oil pipeline between the two countries today.

Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attended a ceremony in Cairo today to inaugurate a recently commissioned oil pipeline between the two kingdoms, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.

The 68-mile (110-km) AB-4 pipeline, built through a collaboration between Saudi Aramco and Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), included construction of a 26-mile offshore section connecting onshore segments in each country. 

The pipeline has a designed capacity of 350,000 bpd and is currently transporting 220,000 bpd from Saudi processing facilties at Abqaiq to a Bapco refinery in Bahrain, SPA said.

In formal remarks, Bahrain's Oil Minister Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al-Khalifadescribed the project as "a new milestone in the centuries-old ties" between the two kingdoms, according to Bahrain News Agency.

Following a welcoming ceremony, the crown prince and king toured a historic exhibition recognizing more than 70 years of energy cooperation between the kingdoms.

Construction of the AB-4 pipeline was previously estimated to cost approximately $300 million.