Week 9 in Review: Big business deals, the expats arrive, and a sit down with an F1 star

A pair of significant international business transactions marked the end of a busy week that also saw news highlighted from New Delhi to Houston.

Here are a few of the week’s top headlines. 

Aramco completes $2.65 billion acquisition of Valvoline’s global products business

Aramco announced this week it has completed the acquisition of the Valvoline Inc. global products business (Valvoline Global Operations’ for $2.65 billion, through one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries.  

With this acquisition, which follows the signing of an equity purchase agreement by the companies announced last August, Aramco accelerates its goal of becoming one of the world’s preeminent integrated, branded lubricants players. 

Aramco will now own the Valvoline brand with respect to the products business, and Valvoline Inc. will own the Valvoline brand with respect to its retail services business. Aramco and Valvoline Inc. plan to work together to continue to grow the Valvoline brand equity globally.

Deal will create new company dedicated to powertrain technologies

Also this week, Aramco said it has signed a letter of intent to become a potential minority stakeholder in a new powertrain technology company (PWT), to be established by Geely Holding Group (Geely Holding), Geely Automobile Holdings Limited (Geely Auto HK.0175) — collectively referred to as “Geely” — and Renault Group. 

The new company will be dedicated to internal combustion and hybrid powertrain technologies.

Aramco’s investment would support the growth of the company, and contribute to key research and development across synthetic fuels solutions and next-gen hydrogen technologies. It is expected that Geely and Renault Group retain equal equity stakes in the new independent entity.

Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant driver Fernando Alonso visits Dhahran, inspires employees 

“The potential in Saudi Arabia is huge. Events like the Saudi Grand Prix hopefully can inspire the next generation of drivers.” 

This is what world-renowned Formula One TM (F1) driver Fernando Alonso had to tell Aramcons during a visit to company headquarters in Dhahran.

The Spanish driver, who joined the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One team at the end of 2022, met with Aramco employees at North Park Auditorium ahead of the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix, which kicks off the 2023 F1 season. 

With Fuels senior vice president Yasser M. Mufti as moderator, Alonso fielded questions about his hopes for the 2023 season, the future of F1, and the growing importance of sustainable fuels in curbing carbon emissions. 

In addition to meeting with Aramco employees, Alonso filled up an Aston Martin vehicle with sustainable test fuel and met with executive and corporate management, including Nabeel A. Al-Jama’, executive vice president of HR & Corporate Services.

3D printing used to construct building in Hawiyah

Aramco’s first 3D printed concrete industrial building has been constructed in Hawiyah.

Project Management (PM) at the company’s Hawiyah Unayzah Gas Reservoir Storage (HUGRS) Program and Consulting Services Department (CSD) led the innovative construction work, which is all part of the company’s pursuit to be a global leader in digital innovation in the energy sector.

The 3D printed radio shelter building stands at a height of 3.85 meters and has a 63-m2 footprint. The construction required modifications to ensure that it had fully reinforced walls.

The building was completed in record delivery time with a printing speed of 100 millimeters per second. The stationary machine had a printing capacity of 7 meters width by 4 meters length by 4 meters height.

The automated nature of 3D printing also reduced the risk of glitches and delays. 

Other advantages of this technology include: 

• Construction waste reduction
• Lower risk of injuries and fatalities from the reduction of manual labor
• Reduced chance of human errors.

And the Community Champions are … TBD

The Community Championships finals open this weekend (March 3) with a ceremony in Ras Tanura, followed by a week of competition that will conclude March 11 in Dhahran.

Scores of athletes from across the company qualified by reaching the top of their respective areas.

Click the header to see the qualifiers for the finals. 

Retirees, Aramco brats descend on Dhahran for fifth KSA Expat Reunion

Theeyyyyr’e back!

The fifth KSA Expat Reunion began Wednesday (March 1), with 450 retired expatriate employees and their children — “Aramco Brats” — to spend the next 14 days reliving fond memories of their time living and working here.

“It is a pleasure to welcome Aramco’s expat family home,” says Ali M. Baluchi, reunion Steering Committee chairman. 

We expect this to be one of our best reunion offerings to date. The local organizing committee has been working tirelessly for over a year to bring this two-week reunion to life.
— Ali M. Baluchi

Aramco has hosted four previous such reunions. The first of which was inspired by a comment shared with Baluchi at an Aramco reunion gathering in 1998 in Arizona. 

Asked the question “Why not a reunion in Saudi Arabia?” Baluchi got the wheels rolling on what would become the first Saudi-based Expat Retiree Reunion in 2000. That reunion was followed by three more in 2009, 2015, and 2019.

“Altogether, around 2,000+ former employees and their families paid a visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, representing 20 countries,” says Baluchi.