A consortium backed by US and Saudi Arabian capital, MERA Oil, reportedly announced on July 29 (local time) that it has narrowed the candidate sites to three for a 200,000-barrel-per-day refinery and export hub to be built outside the Strait of Hormuz. The final site is expected to be confirmed by the end of this year, with mechanical completion of Phase 1 targeted for the end of 2029.
The consortium behind the project consists of three companies: Texas-based energy firm MWG Enterprises, another Texas-based firm, Patel Family Office, and PWS, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s AHQ Group — operating under the name “MERA Oil.” The group stated it has spent the past three years assessing the broader Gulf region and two years conducting detailed reviews of three leading candidate sites. The refinery is planned to be linked with deep-water port infrastructure, large-scale crude and refined product storage, and marine export facilities, alongside a separate industrial park aimed at strengthening the Gulf region’s manufacturing, logistics, and technology capabilities as well as energy security. The original report did not specify particular process technologies or licensors, so the technology partners have not yet been disclosed.