Aramco's Sustainability Initiatives

This assignment delves into Saudi Aramco's commitment to sustainability as outlined in their reports. It examines their environmental protection strategies, including sulfur reduction, CO2 mitigation, and flaring control. The analysis also explores Aramco's economic impact, highlighting its contribution to revenue generation and job creation. Furthermore, the report discusses Aramco's technological advancements aimed at enhancing operational efficiency and minimizing environmental footprint.

IMPACT OF
REGULATORY
REQUIREMENTS
ON
SUSTAINABILITY
INITIATIVES
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IMPACT OF REGULATORY INFLUENCE ON SUSTAINABILITY
INITIATIVES
Looking at the present globalized market, cross currency transactions are increasing at
very faster rate. It lead to increase complexity and uncertainties in the market environment hence,
market becomes tougher day by day. Therefore, it becomes essential for all the enterprises to take
sustainability initiatives to ensure long-run survival. All the organization follow legislations and
regulations to operate in the market. Present project will focuses on assessing the impact of
regulatory influence on sustainability initiatives in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This initiatives
in terms of social, economic, environmental and others helps to accept global challenges and
transform it into build strategic and competitive abilities to assure sustainable business.
Saudi Arabia is one of the largest country of oil and energy production in which wide
range of companies are engaging in oil extraction and energy distribution. Countries such as
Russia, Iran and Qatar are some of the largest greater petroleum liquids available which it export
it to the other countries and generate larger revenues. Saudi Aramco is a national petroleum and
natural gas company who was established in Dhahran. It operates in oil and gas industry and
founded in the year 1933. It is a leading producer of petroleum products who provides petroleum,
natural gas and petrochemical products at global level (Corcoran and Wals, 2004). It is the state
owned enterprises and the largest company in terms of resource reserve and production of
hydrocarbons.
Saudi Aramco takes different steps so as to ensure environmental protection towards
society. Company decides to create a sustainable energy mix by using a combination of both the
solar and nuclear power. It aims at encouraging the participation of private capitalists or investors
in the oil and gas industry. Empty stretches of deserts helped to host solar arrays by the use of
clear sand in manufacture of silicon photovoltaic cells (Corcoran and Wals, 2004). It provide
benefits to Aramco about 3000 sunshine hours each year. Company is extensively developed solar
energy production which costs will be $0.10 per KWH. But still, it is comparatively very cheaper
than diesel-fired energy generation. It plans to generate solar energy and meet high electricity
demand over global market.
In the Aramco, trash, scrap, garbage, laboratory wastage, oily liquids, oily sludge and
asbestos and radioactive wastes, discarded equipment and radioactive waste are some of the
factors which results in environmental pollution (Zilahy and Huisingh, 2009). Its Environmental
Protection Department (EPD) is created in such a way so that environment pollution can be
controlled.
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In this, Engineering department are responsible to land and groundwater protection unit,
air quality and management of dirty water and marine protection. While, under the regulatory
requirements, the environmental compliance division is responsible to compliance with
legislatory provisions such as radiation protection (Giovannucci and et.al., 2008). This department
provide training to the personnel, bring environmental awareness and monitor and evaluate
Aramco's performance on the basis of 21 indicators.
The department is consistently following the rules and complying with regulatory
standards of the KSA. Environmental performance assessment (EPA), Air quality monitoring and
meterology network (AMMNET), Hazardous material communication (HAZCOM), Occupational
health hazard assessment (OHHA) and Comprehensive environmental health assessment (CEHA)
are some of the basis to measure company's actual performance to fulfil their environmental
responsibilities towards society (Green Machine: Saudi Aramco, 2012). The department is highly
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Illustration 1: Environmental protection departments
(Source: Hejari, 2010)

dedicated in waste management through taking cost effective sustainability initiatives such as
recycling and reuse the scrap. Wastewater management and Marine protection indicators evaluate
organization's performance on the basis of waste water discharges and its treatment with the
KSA's regulatory requirements. Aramco has created a conservation and recycling system to
reduce water loss through the use of advanced and innovative technologies (Tata and Prasad,
2015). However, AMMNET is a program to monitor several air pollutants which are mandatory
required according to the national regulatory practices. Along with this, workers who are directly
engaging in oil extraction take high risk and hazards to their health. At the workplace, labour are
engaging in handling and storing chemicals which may cause health issues to them. Aramco's
HAZCOM, OHHA and CEHA program are helpful to reduce health risk of current operations and
potential hazards as well (Shah and Arjoon, 2015). Company is regularly focusing on making
hazard free operations at work practices so that health risks can be eliminated results in long run
sustainability. It is because safe working environment helps to attract skilled and talented pool in
Aramco. Thus, it becomes clear that Aramco took this sustainability initiatives to provide
protection to the workers at workplaces.
Moreover, Aramco's Environment Master Plan (EMP) is designed and implemented in the
year 2001 so as to bring facilities in compliance with the regulations. This plan evaluate and
examine the need of projects and approve it to reduce environmental risk. It identify projects
capital requirement and give priority to the environmental projects which will contribute to reduce
health hazards for the workers. Moreover, the projects are mainly associated with the management
of waste water and air and fuel emission as well (Shah and Arjoon, 2015). EMP funded $3.3
billion to 40 projects till 2011, which is an great achievement. The plan is developed to create a
corporate flaring minimisation roadmap by installation of flare gas recovery, flaring rates for more
than set standards of 1MM cubic feet per day and installation of smokeless technologies for
routine flaring rates less than 1MMSCFD. It reduce air pollutants such as SO2 and NOx and
minimize flaring losses as well.
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Environmental Technology is the other step in which Aramco use advanced and innovative
technologies to improve their environmental protection (Hejari, 2010). In this, Aramco is
consistently following the regulatory standards, reduce pollutants, improve environmental
monitoring, took remedial actions and manage waste accordingly to achieve targets.
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Illustration 2: ESP status by category
(Source: Hejari, 2010)

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Illustration 3: Environmental technology
(Source: Hejari, 2010)

All this sustainability initiative driven revenues and manage operating costs and contribute
to the core business value in the range of $1.25 trillion to $10 trillion at every point of time. It
becomes a leading organization in reduction of sulfur, CO2 and flaring as well. Thus, the report
concluded that Aramco ensure long run sustainability and creates a better future.
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Illustration 4: Technology initiatives
(Source: Hejari, 2010)

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Corcoran, P.B. and Wals, A.E., (2004). Higher education and the challenge of sustainability.
Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. 10. pp. 0-306.
Giovannucci, D. and et.al., (2008). Seeking sustainability: COSA preliminary analysis of
sustainability initiatives in the coffee sector. Committee on Sustainability Assessment.
Shah, K.U. and Arjoon, S., (2015). Through Thick and Thin? How Self‐determination Drives the
Corporate Sustainability Initiatives of Multinational Subsidiaries. Business Strategy and
the Environment. 24(6). pp. 565-582.
Shah, K.U. and Arjoon, S., (2015). Through Thick and Thin? How Self‐determination Drives the
Corporate Sustainability Initiatives of Multinational Subsidiaries. Business Strategy and
the Environment. 24(6). pp. 565-582.
Tata, J. and Prasad, S., (2015). National cultural values, sustainability beliefs, and organizational
initiatives. Cross Cultural Management. 22(2). pp. 278-296.
Zilahy, G. and Huisingh, D., (2009). The roles of academia in regional sustainability initiatives.
Journal of Cleaner Production. 17(12). pp.1057-1066.
Online
Green Machine: Saudi Aramco, (2012). [Pdf]. Available through: <http://www.growthmarkets-
oil.com/features/featureoil-gas-agenda-saudi-aramco-environment/>. [Accessed on 18th
April, 2016].
Hejari, R., (2010). [Pdf]. Environmental challenges and Opportunities at Saudi Aramco.
Available through: <http://qc.cme-mec.ca/download.php?file=gfqta8cm.pdf>. [Accessed
on 18th April, 2016].
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Online
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