JCCP NEWS
Newsletter of Japan Cooperation Center, Petroleum

TopicsNo. 100
May 2008

Message from the Outgoing JCCP President

Mr. Akira Idemitsu

In this issue:

Executive Adviser, Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.

TopicsMessage from the Outgoing JCCP President

Mr. Akira Idemitsu

1

Message from the Incoming JCCP President

Mr. Yaichi Kimura2

The 26th JCCP International
Symposium

3

The 16th Joint GCC-Japan
Environment Symposium

8

Mr. Kojima Visits the Middle East 11
Joint Symposium on Fuel Cell
Technology Held in Kuwait

15

Personnel Exchange Programs
Tailor-made Program on
Environmental Management
Held in Qatar

17

Tailor-made Program on
Refinery Plant MaintenanceHeld in Saudi Arabia

18

Tailor-made Program on Human
Resource Management &Development Held in Japan

21

Tailor-made Program on
Practical Technology for
Energy Saving Held in Japan

24

Participant’s Voice

26

JCCP Regular Courses Completed
Jan. – Mar. 200828
Technical Cooperation
The 9th Kuwait-Japan Joint
Symposium

29

Mr. Saad A. Al-Kubaisi,
Manager at QP, Visits Japan

30

Announcement
Personnel Changes

32

I am leaving my post as President of JCCP, andwould like to take this opportunity to reflect on my
two-year, two-month appointment at JCCP.
During my term as President of JCCP since
February 2006, both the global oil industry and
JCCP have undergone major transitions.
WTI crude oil, which was 65 dollars per barrel
at the beginning of my term, soon increased, andhas exceeded 100 dollars per barrel this March.
There is no denying that we have entered a newera of high oil prices.
Also during this time, we have taken theoccasion of JCCP’s 25th anniversary to launch efforts to reorganize JCCP activities.
We have established the direction of JCCP activities for the next 25 years, byorganizing a JCCP Activity Review Meeting in FY2005, and installing countryspecific strategy working groups and preparing country-specific action plans in
FY2007. I am proud to be able to hand over the reigns to Mr. Yaichi Kimura, theincoming president, with an easy mind.
JCCP training courses have received more than 17,000 participants, since
JCCP was founded in 1981. The early participants are now active leaders in theirrespective countries. By steadily accumulating significant achievements throughtraining courses and technical cooperation projects, JCCP has developed into anorganization that is now widely recognized by heads of oil-related institutions in
oil-producing countries. It has also developed a profile worthy of engaging in direct
dialogues with key figures in those countries. The expectations of oil-producing
countries have grown dramatically, and their requests have greatly diversified. Evenin this era of high oil prices, JCCP must actively continue to respond to such newdiversified requests, and to strengthen its trust and relationship with oil-producing
countries.
I believe JCCP will come to assume greater responsibilities in the future. I hopethat all officers and staff members of JCCP will continue to work together under
Mr. Kimura’s new leadership, to respond to oil-producing countries’ expectations

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics •1

of JCCP, and to strengthening cooperative relationships toward securing a stable supply of oil. I would also
like to ask all oil-producing countries, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, as well as JCCP
member companies, for their continued support of JCCP’s activities.
It has been a memorable experience to serve more than two years as President of JCCP, during a period ofmajor transitions in the oil industry. I would like to thank everyone for their support and cooperation.
Thank you all very much.

Message from the Incoming JCCP President

Mr. Yaichi Kimura
President, Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd.
I am honored to be recommended by the JCCP Board of Directors as the next
President of JCCP. Here, I would like to express a few words of greetings.
The Japan Cooperation Center, Petroleum (JCCP) was established in
November 1981 as an organization for promoting technical cooperation andhuman exchanges in the oil downstream sector, between Japan and oil-producing
countries. In April 2001, JCCP inherited from the Japan Petroleum Energy
Center (JPEC) its information exchange, international research assistance,
and technical cooperation activities, and has become a center of international
cooperation in the oil downstream sector. Through continuous efforts to provide
effective and comprehensive cooperation, JCCP has steadily built and deepened
its relationship of cooperation and trust with oil-producing countries. During the27 years since its founding, JCCP has received more than 17,000 participants,
and has sent more than 4,600 Japanese experts to oil-producing countries.
Today, we are seeing a global rise in a spirit of nationalism based on natural resources. However, Japanpossesses few natural resources, and must depend on its relationship with oil-producing countries to secure a stablesupply of oil. Yet, I believe that for Japan to secure a stable supply of oil, it must go beyond its simple role as anoil-consuming country that is dependent on oil-producing countries for oil, to acting as a catalyst in promoting“relationships of mutual growth,” based on its economic relationships with oil-producing countries.
On the occasion of its 25th anniversary, JCCP has reorganized its activities under the leadership of Mr.
Akira Idemitsu, former President of JCCP, and has presented three focuses of future activities: (1) developmentof priority activities; (2) development of activities that satisfy the needs of beneficiary countries; and (3)strengthening collaboration with relevant organizations.
My wholehearted intent is to succeed in achieving these objectives, and to do my best to respond to theoil-producing countries’ strong expectations of JCCP, in line with JCCP’s goal of contributing to securing astable supply of oil.
I realize that I will assume a heavy responsibility as President of JCCP. Though I am prepared to do my best
to fulfill my duties, I would like to ask all JCCP member companies and staff members for their cooperationand support.

2• Topics •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Participants of the symposium

TopicsThe 26th JCCP International Symposium“The Role of the Oil Downstream Sector
from the Perspective of Stable Energy Supply”
On February 6 and 7, 2008, “The 26th
JCCP International Symposium” washeld under the auspices of the Ministryof Economy, Trade and Industry. As the
symposium took place just as the crude
oil price had exceeded 100 dollars per
barrel, it attracted greater attention thanever before, and drew an audience of
close to 300 participants.

Symposium ThemeT h i s y e a r ’s s y m p o s i u m wa s
conducted under the theme, “The Roleof the Oil Downstream Sector from the
Perspective of Stable Energy Supply—
The Necessity and Possibilities ofInternational Collaboration.”
Today, the issue of securing a stableoil supply is a worldwide concern.
The objective of the symposium
was to therefore seek avenues forsecuring a stable supply of oil, throughdiscussions among guests and panelists
from Japan and abroad, on issues andcountermeasures commonly faced in
the oil downstream sector. JCCP hoped
to promote the awareness that “it isimportant for oil-producing and oilconsuming countries to step beyond theirroles, to cooperate in resolving issues
in the oil industry, while sharing theirexperience with each other,” and that“promoting cooperation and deepening
the engagement between oil-producing
and oil-consuming countries is the key
to securing a stable energy supply.”

Symposium Overview(1) Opening Ceremony(February 6, 2008)
On the first day, the symposium
began with an opening address by Mr.
JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Akira Idemitsu, President of JCCP,
followed by a greeting by the guest ofhonor, Mr. Shinsuke Kitagawa, DirectorGeneral of the Natural Resources andFuel Department, Agency for Natural
Resources and Energy, Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry (METI),
and an introduction of the chairmen
and panelists of Sessions 1 and 2 by
Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Directorof JCCP. Following this, Mr. Idemitsu
gave a keynote speech.
In his greeting, Mr. Kitagawa firstwelcomed all the guests from abroad
who had come to Japan to participate in
the symposium. He then spoke about thesignificance of the close relationshipsthat oil-producing countries and Japan’soil downstream sector have built over
the years. Today, the crude oil market isundergoing a great change in response
to increasing global demands for oil, but• Topics •3

Guest of honor speech
Mr. Shinsuke Kitagawa, Director-General
Natural Resources and Fuel Department
Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, METI

Japan nonetheless continues to receive
a stable supply of crude oil, owing
precisely to the strong relationship oftrust it has cultivated with oil-producing
countries. Representing METI, Mr.
Kitagawa also expressed his hopesthat JCCP will continue to implement
activities that respond to the needsof oil-producing countries, and thatthe mutually beneficial relationships
between JCCP and those countries willcontinue to grow even stronger.
Mr. Idemitsu, in his keynote speech,
stressed the importance of oil and thenecessity of ensuring its sustainable supply.
He explained that oil is indispensable toautomobile, airplanes, and other modernmeans of transportation, as well as animportant petrochemical raw material,from which various types of plastics
and chemicals are made. It is a precious
resource that must not be depleted byour generation. Mr. Idemitsu emphasizedthat it is our responsibility to the next
generation, to reconsider the role of theoil downstream sector and ensure a stableoil supply for the future.
(2) Special Lectures(February 6, 2008)
Following Mr. Idemitsu’s keynote
speech, Dr. Ken Koyama, Board
Member of The Institute of Energy
Economics, Japan, and Mr. Waleed H.
Al-Bedaiwi, General Manager, Saudi
Petroleum, Ltd., were asked to give a
special lecture as guest speakers.
After briefly summarizing today’s
global energy situation, Dr. Koyama
discussed the evolving relationshipbetween the Middle East and Asia. He
stated that the Middle East and Asia
are gradually forming an inseparable
relationship, in which they mutually

Special lecture
Dr. Ken Koyama, Board Member
The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan

4• Topics •Keynote speech
Mr. Akira Idemitsu, President of JCCP

depend upon each other. This is because
the two regions are the growth centersof the world. Asia’s growth could
provide an enormous oil market to
the Middle East, and growth in the
Middle East would allow Asia to importa large supply of oil. In the future,investments are expected to increase inboth directions, from the Middle East toAsia, and vice versa, and bring the tworegions closer to each other.
Mr. Al-Bedaiwi spoke about thesignificant relationship between oilproducing and oil-consuming countries,
likening the relationship to “the twosides of a coin,” which are inseparablefrom the other. He closed his lecture,by articulating Saudi Aramco’s strong
vow to join hands with its partners in
the oil downstream sector, to upholdits responsibility of providing a stablesupply of oil.

Special lecture
Mr. Waleed H. Al-Bedaiwi, General Manager
Saudi Petroleum, Ltd.

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

(3) Discussion Sessions(February 7, 2008)
The second day of the symposiumfeatured Session 1 discussions in themorning and Session 2 discussions
in the afternoon. They arrived at thefollowing conclusions.

1) Session 1
Theme: Management Issues in
the Oil Downstream Sector for
Contributing to Globally Stable
Supply of Energy
The chairman of Session 1, Mr.
Isao Kusakabe, Executive Officer& General Manager, International
Ventures Department, Cosmo Oil Co.,
Ltd., summarized Session 1 discussions
as follows: “Many countries today areexperiencing rapid economic growth, asituation that will make the world evermore oil-dependent in the future. At

26th JCCP International Symposium Program
The Role of the Oil Downstream Sector from the Perspective of Stable Energy Supply
Date
Feb. 6 (Wed)Time
2:00 – 3:00 pm

3:15 – 5:40 pm

Feb. 7 (Thu)Proceedings
Opening ceremony•

Opening address:
Mr. Akira Idemitsu, President of JCCP•

Guest of honor speech:
Mr. Shinsuke Kitagawa, Director-General, Natural Resources and Fuel
Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, METI•

Introduction of session chairmen and panelists:
Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP•

Keynote speech:
Mr. Akira Idemitsu, President of JCCP

Special lectures•

Dr. Ken Koyama
Board Member, The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan•

Mr. Waleed H. Al-Bedaiwi
General Manager, Saudi Petroleum, Ltd.

•Mr. Sultan Al-Mehairi
Director, Marketing & Refining, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC)

6:00 – 8:00 pm

Reception

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Session I “Management Issues in the Oil Downstream Sector for
Contributing to Globally Stable Supply of Energy”

12:00 – 1:30 pm

Lunch break

1:30 – 4:00 pm

Session II “Technological Issues in the Oil Downstream Sector for
Contributing to Globally Stable Supply of Energy”

4:00 – 4:10 pm

Closing greeting: Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP

Special Lectures
Country

Organization

Name

Title

Japan

The Institute of Energy Economics,
Japan

Dr. Ken Koyama

Board Member
Director, Strategy and Industry
Research Unit

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Petroleum, Ltd.

Mr. Waleed H. Al-Bedaiwi

General Manager

UAE

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC)

Mr. Sultan Al-Mehairi

Director, Marketing & Refining(on behalf of Mr. Hashem Y. Al-Refaei, Marketing Research &Administration Manager)

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics •5

Session 1 panelists(From the right: Indonesia, Oman,
Qatar, UAE, Japan)

Session 2 panelists(From the right: Iran, Kuwait,
Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Japan)

the same time, however, we are facing
a number of serious issues, such as
drastic increases in crude oil prices,
environmental issues that call for
stringent regulations, growing demands
for petroleum products, and the needto seek measures for securing a stableoil supply. Given this situation, urgent
attention must be directed to expanding
and upgrading refinery facilities anddeveloping human resources. As Japanand oil-producing countries share thesame oil downstream issues, we must
harness our efforts to secure a globallystable supply of oil. Relationships of trustthat are born from such collaboration
would also provide greater ‘energy
security.’”2) Session 2
Theme: Technological Issues in
the Oil Downstream Sector for
Contributing to Globally Stable
Supply of Energy
The chairman of Session 2, Mr.
Keiichi Matsumoto, Director & Senior
Executive Officer of Toyo Engineering
Corporation, identified the following
three technical issues from among
various issues confronting the oil

6• Topics •downstream sector in each country, as
common issues that have a particularly
large impact on a globally stable supplyof energy.
The first issue is the growing demand
for gasoline and diesel oil, and measures
for satisfying that demand, such asincreasing heavy oil cracking capacity
and adopting deep desulfurization
technologies. In every country, demands
for transportation fuel, such as gasoline
and diesel oil, are increasing, while
demands for heavy oil are decreasing.
For this reason, there is an urgent needto construct and expand the capacities
of facilities that crack heavy oil andconvert it to gasoline and diesel oil.
Desulfurization technologies are alsosought, to produce petroleum productsthat comply with envi ronmental
standards that are becoming more andmore stringent the world over.

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

The second issue is the decrease inheavy oil demand and the increase ofvalue-added petroleum products. As acountermeasure to the decreasing demandfor heavy oil, heavy oil should either be
converted to light oil, by introducing acracking unit, or to higher value-added
products, such as by introducing a
residual oil direct desulfurization unit,
solvent dewaxing unit, or IGCC, toproduce thermal power, steam energy,
electric power, or synthetic gas.
The third issue is safety andenvironmental measures. Ensuringsafety requires the proper maintenancemanagement of facilities, utilization of
appropriate tools, and awareness-raisingof employees. Environmental measures
should not only focus on preventing air
and water pollution, but must also pay
due consideration to other issues, suchas the reduction of industrial waste.

(4) Summary
Lastly, Mr. Kojima summarized
the two days of discussions and poseda thought for everyone to consider. He
stated that the oil downstream sector

Session I:
Chairman:Country

must fulfill an important role in securing
a globally stable supply of energy.
“Therefore,” he asked, “shouldn’t
the players in the downstream sector
mutually cooperate and make active

efforts to serve as a bridge between
oil-producing and oil-consuming
countries?” The symposium came toan end on this thought-provoking note.
<by Hisayoshi Tanda,
Administration Dept.>

Management Issues in the Oil Downstream Sector for Contributing to Globally Stable Supply of Energy
Mr. Isao Kusakabe, Executive Officer & General Manager, International Ventures Department,
Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd.
Company

Name

Title

Indonesia

PT PERTAMINA

Mr. Gigih Prakoso

Manager, Corporate Business
Planning and Development

Qatar

Qatar Petroleum

Dr. Ali Hamed Al-Mulla

Manager, Corporate Environment
and Sustainable Development

Oman

Oman Refinery Company L.L.C.

Mr. Said Waleed Q. Al-Zadjali

Manager, Procurement, Contracts &InventoryUAE

Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Co.
(TAKREER)

Mr. Sultan Saeed Al-Muhairi

Abu Dhabi Refinery Division
ManagerJapan

Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd.

Mr. Hirohiko Kato

General Manager, International
Business Dept.

Session II:
Chairman:Country

Technological Issues in the Oil Downstream Sector for Contributing to Globally Stable Supply of Energy
Mr. Keiichi Matsumoto, Director, Senior Executive Officer, General Manager, Plant Engineering Center,Toyo Engineering Corporation
Company

Name

Title

Iran

National Iranian Oil Refining and Mr. Amin Allah Eskandari
Distribution Company (NIORDC)

KuwaitKuwait National Petroleum Co.

Mr. Mohammed Ghazi Al-Mutairi Deputy Managing Director,
Mina Abdulla Refinery

Nigeria

Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation

Engr. Onochi A. Anyaoku

Group Executive Director, Refining
and Petrochemicals Directorate

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Aramco

Mr. Ali Alhazmi

Superintendent, Riyadh RefineryOperation DivisionJapan

Toyo Engineering Corporation

Mr. Tomomichi Tomita

General Manager, Process Systems
Engineering Division

Scene of the Symposium

Director, Refining Affairs

Closing address
Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics •7

Topics

The 16th Joint GCC-Japan
Environment Symposium(The 4th Joint KFUPM-JCCP Environment Symposium)

Participants of the symposium

T h e 16 t h J o i n t G C C - Ja p a n
Environment Symposium (the 4th
Joint KFUPM-JCCP Environment
Symposium) was held in Dhahran, Saudi
Arabia, from January 28 to 30, 2008,by the joint sponsorship of JCCP andKing Fahd University of Petroleum &Minerals (KFUPM). The main theme ofthe symposium was “GCC Environment
and Sustainable Development.”
The symposium is held annually in a

GCC country under basic environmental
themes, and provides a forum fordiscussions among experts in theenvironment field.
An opening ceremony officiallyopened the symposium on the 28th. It
was attended by H.E. Dr. Khaled bin
Saleh Al-Sultan, Rector of KFUPM,
Dr. Sahel N. Abdul-Jauwad, Vice
Rector of KFUPM, Mr. Isam A. Bayat,
Vice President, Engineering Services,

H.E. Dr. Khaled bin Saleh Al-Sultan, Rector of KFUPM

8• Topics •Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi
Aramco), and H.E. Hiroshi Oka, Chargéd’Affaires, Embassy of Japan to Saudi
Arabia, in addition to more than 140
participants. H.E. Dr. Al-Sultan, Mr.
Bayat, H.E. Mr. Oka, and Mr. Katsuo
Yokoyama, Managing Director of JCCP,
each gave an opening address.
H. E . D r. A l- Su lt a n st rongly
acknowledged that environmental
considerations are essential to the

Mr. Isam A. Bayat, Vice President of Saudi Aramco

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

H.E. Hiroshi Oka, Chargé d’Affaires,
Embassy of Japan to Saudi Arabia

sust a i nable development of t he
GCC countries, and expressed highexpectations that the symposium will
discuss topics of particular relevance tothe environment in the region, such as
water resources and climate change.
Mr. Bayat com mented on thetimeliness of holding this environment
symposium in Saudi Arabia, just at atime when Saudi Aramco is making
company-wide effor ts to addressenvironmental issues, and said he waslooking forward to what would be
discussed.
H.E. Mr. Oka stated that Japan and
the GCC countries have a long-standing
relationship in the energy sector, but arelationship of cooperation is rapidly
evolving in the environment sector as
well. He said that he is extremely pleased
to see a strengthening of relationships
between JCCP and the national oil
companies, research institutions, anduniversities in the GCC countries, in

Mr. Katsuo Yokoyama, Managing Director of JCCP

the environment sector.
Mr. Yokoyama, after giving a brief
overview of JCCP technical cooperation
projects in Saudi Arabia, stated that
it was a great pleasure to be able tohold this environment symposiumin the GCC countries each year, andemphasized the fact that environmental
issues cannot be solved by one country’s
efforts alone, but requires global level
initiatives.
Discussion sessions held on the
28th and 29th featured 15 presentations
on fou r t opics : (i) Sust a i nable
Environmental Development; (ii) Oil
Industry and Environmental Issues;(iii) Environmental Rehabilitation;and (iv) Research and Development inEnvironment. Active discussions took
place in each session.
On the 29th, a closing ceremony
was held following the completion of
the discussion session. Representing
KFUPM, Dr. Walid A. Abderrahman,

Opening ceremony

Professor, Water Resource Management,summarized the two days of sessions,and representing JCCP, Koichi Io,
Deputy General Manager, TechnicalCooperation Department, took theopportunity to thank KFUPM, Saudi
Aramco, and all participants for their
participation in the symposium.
During the two days of discussion
sessions, some participants from the
GCC countries asked whether theJapanese lecturers could also delivera presentation at an environmental
conference to be held in their respective
countries. The participants apparently
found the presentations on Japan’s
advanced environmental technologies
to be highly beneficial.
On the 30th, we visited a coastalmangrove nursery at Saudi Aramco’s
Ras Tanura Refinery. We saw thenursery as an indication of Saudi
Aramco’s strong commitment to theenvironment.

Symposium session

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics •9

In this environment symposium, Mr.
Bayat, Vice President of Saudi Aramco,
not only attended the opening ceremony,
but also hosted a reception for all guests(on the 28th). Taking the opportunityof his generous cooperation, we hope
to further deepen JCCP’s relationshipwith Saudi Aramco.
On January 27, the day prior toholding the symposium, we held apress conference at KFUPM. With theattendance of Dr. Abdul-Jauwad, Vice
Rector of KFUPM, H.E. Mr. Oka,
and five Japanese lecturers, we madean announcement on the environment
symposium scheduled to be held thenext day, and provided an overview
of JCCP activities in Saudi Arabia.
News of the press conference received
coverage in the local newspaper, andcontributed to increasing JCCP’s profile
in Saudi Arabia.
We extend our deepest appreciation
to everyone who has cooperated in
the successful implementation of this
symposium.
<by Koichi Io,
Technical Cooperation Dept.>

Symposium venue

Local newspaper article on thepress conference

List of Speakers
No

Country

Session 1:
Moderator:

Name

Organization

Sustainable Environmental Development
Dr. Kenichi Fujimoto, Kitakyushu International Techno-cooperative Association (KITA) <Japan>

1

Japan

Dr. Takehiko Matsui

Tottori University

2

KuwaitDr. Amr Fadlemawla

Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR)

3

BahrainDr. Nader El-Masri

Bahrain Center for Studies & Research (BCSR)

Session 2:
Moderator:

Oil Industry and Environmental Issues
Prof. Abdul Malik Al AlShaikh, King Saud University (KSU) <Saudi Arabia>

4

Japan

Mr. Masayuki Aida

Nippon Oil Corporation

5

UAE

Dr. Muftah H. El-Naas

UAE University (UAEU)

6

Japan

Dr. Masaharu Tasaki

Shimizu Corporation

7

Qatar

Dr. John Kilani

Qatar Petroleum (QP)

Session 3:
Moderator:

Environmental Rehabilitation
Dr. Mohammed Al Ansari, Bahrain Center for Studies and Research (BCSR) <Bahrain>

8

Japan

Dr. Kenichi Fujimoto

Kitakyushu International Techno-cooperative
Association

9

Saudi Arabia

Dr. Hussein Al-Beshrey

Royal Commission for Jubail

10

Oman

Dr. Andy Yaw Kwarteng

Sultan Qaboos University (SQU)

11

Saudi Arabia

Dr. Ahmad S. Bajahlan

Royal Commission for Yanbu

Session 4:
Moderator:

Research and Development in EnvironmentProf. Abdulaziz M. Al Bassam, King Saud University (KSU) <Saudi Arabia>

12

Saudi Arabia

Dr. Walid Abderrahman

King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals(KFUPM)

13

Japan

Dr. Ryoji Ohba

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

14

Saudi Arabia

Dr. Khaled Al-Damegh

King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology(KACST)

15

Saudi Arabia

Dr. William G. Conner

Saudi Aramco

10 • Topics •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Topics

Mr. Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP,
Visits the Middle East
—Iran, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia—
Between January and March 2008,
Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Directorof JCCP, visited Iran, Qatar, UAE,
and Saudi Arabia, to reaffirm basic
principles for strengthening its relations
with those countries, through policy
dialogues with the heads of national oil
companies.
As outlined below, Mr. Kojima
received full understa nding a nd
agreement regarding the reorganizationof JCCP and its basic policies for futurecooperation activities, and successfully
paved the way toward strengthening ties
between JCCP and the four countries.

I. Iran(January 20 – 24, 2008)
On January 22, Mr. Kojima visited
NIORDC (National Iranian Oil Refining& Distribution Co.) and met with
Mr. Amin Allah Eskandari, Director
Refining Affairs. Mr. Kojima first
thanked Mr. Eskandari for agreeing toparticipate in the JCCP International
Symposium that was scheduled to beheld the coming February, despite hisbusy schedule. He then discussed thestrong cooperative relationship thatexists between NIORDC and JCCP
in training activities, and explainedthat JCCP receives many NIORDC
participants to JCCP regular courses
each year. Mr. Kojima also gave abrief account of the Expert Service(ES) program that was implemented
last year and an overview of the Study
Tour (ST) program that was scheduled
to be implemented in February, andencouraged NIORDC to make further
use of JCCP regular courses and tailormade courses in the future. In response,
Mr. Eskandari expressed his deep
appreciation of the cooperative efforts
of JCCP, and requested their continued
cooperation in establishing even closer
ties between the two organizations. In
the area of human resource development,
Mr. Eskandari specifically requested
JCCP’s cooperation in cultivating
human resources capable of creating
basic refinery designs, as well as humanresources qualified to engage in projectand safety management activities at
NIORDC. The two leaders agreed tocontinue exchanging views, in search of
the best means of future cooperation.
On January 23, Mr. Kojima visited
NIOPDC (National Iranian Oil Products

Meeting at NIORDC
Front row, right: Mr. Amin Allah Eskandari,
Director Refining Affairs

Distribution Co.) and met with Mr.
S. N. Sha hnazizadeh, Managing
Director. Mr. Kojima first thanked Mr.
Shahnazizadeh for his participation in
a JCCP International Symposium inthe past, when Mr. Shahnazizadeh had
been Managing Director of Esfahan Oil
Refining Company. The two leadersthen discussed NIOPDC’s participationin JCCP regular courses, and agreed towork toward further strengthening ties
between the two organizations.
Also on January 23, Mr. Kojima
paid a call on H.E. Akio Shirota,
Ambassador, and Mr. Fujisawa, First
Secretary, at the Embassy of Japan in
Iran. Mr. Kojima gave an overview of
his meeting at NIORDC, and described
JCCP’s reorganization efforts and future
policies for strengthening relations with
oil-producing countries in the Middle
East. Ambassador Shirota noted that
Iran has abundant human resources,and heartily agreed that providing
continuous cooperation through JCCP
tailor-made courses and technicalcooperation would be key to building
strong ties between the two countries.
<by Takashi Hori, Operations Dept.>

With H.E. Ambassador Akio Shirota
at the Embassy of Japan in Iran

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics • 11

II. Qatar and UAE(February 10 – 15, 2008)
1. Qatar
On February 12, Mr. Kojima met
with H.E. Abdullah Bin Hamad AlAttiyah, Deputy Prime Minister andMinister of Energy and Industry, andChairman and Managing Director of
Qatar Petroleum (QP). Mr. Kojima
first expressed his deep gratitude to his
Excellency for his strong leadershipin the Joint GCC-Japan Environment
Symposium, which was held last year,
then discussed the favorable relationshipof growing cooperation between QP
and JCCP, with reference to the large
increase that has been observed in thenumber of QP participants to regularcourses, particularly over the past five
years. Mr. Kojima also gave an overview
of the ST and ES programs held last year,
and finally emphasized the significant
role of JCCP in further solidifying thecooperative relationship between thetwo organizations, and in increasing
synergistic effects from the combinationof training and technical cooperation
activities. Deputy Prime Minister
Al-Attiyah expressed his profoundappreciation of JCCP cooperation, anddeclared his full support for further
expanding the relationship between thetwo organizations. Sheikh Abdulaziz
Bi n Ja ssi m A l-T ha n i, D i re ctor,
Administration, QP, also stressed thetwo organizations’ shared views on
strengthening bonds between QP and
JCCP.
Mr. Kojima also held meetings
with Mr. Essa Al-Kaabi, Director,
Qatarization, QP, and members of the
Human Resource Department. The
members of the meetings agreed tomake good use of both regular courses
and tailor-made courses, and articulated
their wishes to further strengthen QP’s
cooperative relationship with JCCP.

They also requested JCCP’s continued
support in the numerous large-scale
projects that are being implemented
across the energy industry in Qatar
today.
2. UAEOn February 13, Mr. Kojima met
with H.E. Yousef Omar Bin Yousef,
CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil
Company (ADNOC). While ADNOC
a nd JCCP a re enjoyi ng a go o dcooperative relationship through theimplementation of significant projects,
including projects for flare gas recovery
and the establishment of a research
center, Mr. Kojima stated that he would
like to develop stronger ties between
ADNOC/TAKREER and JCCP, byimplementing JCCP’s new schemeof tailor-made courses. H.E. Yousef
Omar Bin Yousef responded by firstexpressing his deep appreciation of
JCCP activities, and upon agreeing

At QP
H.E. Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah,
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry(second from right) and Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Jassim Al-Thani,
Director, Administration (right)

At QP
With Mr. Essa Al-Kaabi, Director, Qatarization

At ADNOCWith H.E. Yousef Omar Bin Yousef, CEO (center)

At ADNOCWith Mr. Abdulla Saeed Al-Badi, Human Resources Director

12 • Topics •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

At TAKREERWith Mr. Jasem Ali Al-Sayegh, General Manager

that tailor-made courses are indeed an
extremely interesting scheme, requested
working-level discussions for theirimplementation in the future.
Mr. Kojima also met with Mr.
Abdulla Saeed A l-Badi, Huma nResources Director. Mr. Al-Badilistened with interest to Mr. Kojima’s
proposal for implementing tailor-madecourses, but based on the reason that
sending an entire group of supervisorlevel officers to Japan at once would
pose some difficulties, he stated that hewould prefer to begin with ES programs.
In fact, Mr. Al-Badi mentioned that hewould like JCCP to implement a numberof ES courses on different themes andfor different groups of participants.
On February 14, Mr. Kojima met
with Mr. Jasem Ali Al-Sayegh, General
Manager of Abu Dhabi Oil Refining
Company (TAKREER), who accepted
Mr. Kojima’s proposal for implementing
a tailor-made program with enthusiasm,
a n d e n c o u r a g e d wo r k i n g-l eve l

discussions
fo r d eve l o p i n geffective programs.
The two leadersconcurred on thesig n i f ica nc e ofutilizing ta ilormade prog ra ms
to strengthent he cooperat ive
relationshipb et we en JCC P
and ADNOC /TAKREER.

3. Embassy of Japan in Qatar and
UAE
Mr. Kojima took the opportunityof his visit to Qatar and UAE to pay
a call on the Embassy of Japan in thetwo countries. In Qatar, he met with
H.E. Ambassador Yukio Kitazume
and Mr. Homma, First Secretary, andin UAE, he met with H.E. Ambassador
Takuma Hatano and Mr. Inokuchi,First Secretary, to give an overview
of his meetings at QP and ADNOC,
and to explain the restructuring of
JCCP and future policies. In regard to
tailor-made courses, both Ambassadors
expressed their concern that it could be
difficult for a number of personnel tosimultaneously leave their workplaces
for a substantial period of time toparticipate in tailor-made courses inJapan, and that perhaps ES programs
could be more readily implemented,
in this respect. Ambassador Hatanosuggested dispatching exper ts toWith H.E. Ambassador Yukio Kitazume
at the Embassy of Japan in Qatar

ADNOC’s Petroleum Institute (PI).
According to Ambassador Hatano,
ADNOC and TAKREER personnel arehighly interested in learning about fieldmanagement in Japan, so it may be agood idea to have Japanese experts visit
the working environment at ADNOC
and TAKREER, point out potential
problem areas, and provide guidanceon improvement measures.
<by Koji Hori, Administration Dept.>

III. Saudi Arabia(February 29 – March 5,
2008)
1. Saudi Aramco
Ras Tanura Refinery
In the morning of March 2, Mr.
Kojima attended a tailor-made seminarthat had begun the previous day at
the Ras Tanura Refinery. He gave aspeech that emphasized his strong
wish to strengthen ties with Saudi
Aramco, and with the Ras Tanura
Refinery in particular, Saudi Aramco’s
mother refinery, and exchanged views
with refinery officers on future JCCP
cooperation. (For details, see “Tailormade Program on Refinery Plant
Maintenance Held in Saudi Arabia,” onpages 18-20 of this newsletter.)In the meeting with Mr. Mohammed
S. Al-Gusaier, Vice President, Refining,
Mr. Kojima extended his gratitude
to all who supported and cooperated
in implementing the first tailor-madeseminar at the refinery, but declaredWith H.E. Ambassador Takuma Hatano (center)at the Embassy of Japan in UAE

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Topics • 13

of the tailor-madescheme.
2. Saudi Aramco
Head Office
In the afternoono f M a r c h 2 , M r.
Kojima visited theSaudi Aramco Head
Office and met with
Mr. Abdulaziz F. AlKhayyal, Senior ViceAt the Ras Tanura Refinery
President, Industrial
With Mr. Mohammed S. Al-Gusaier, Vice President
Relations. Mr. Kojima
paid a call on Mr. Althat this is “only the beginning” of Khayyal last January, to clarify JCCP’s
the new phase of JCCP cooperation, desire to strengthen its ties with Saudi
and that JCCP intends to continue Aramco, and to ask for Saudi Aramco’s
enhancing its activities in the future. Mr. cooperation in sending participants
Al-Gusaier expressed his appreciation to regular courses and implementingof JCCP activities, saying that refinery tailor-made programs. As a result,personnel who have participated in through Mr. Al-Khayyal’s kind offices,past JCCP courses have returned to the JCCP has received 36 participants fromrefinery not only with new technical Saudi Aramco in FY2007, the largest
knowledge, but also with a keen interest number from the company since JCCP
in Japanese corporate culture, as a result first launched regular courses, and hasof having been exposed to a refinery implemented a tailor-made seminar atwork environment where employees of the Ras Tanura Refinery. Mr. Kojima
their same generation work with pride gave an overview of those achievements,
and responsibility. He stated that he and deeply thanked Mr. Al-Khayyal forwould therefore like to continue sending his generous cooperation and thoughtfulrefinery personnel to take part in JCCP consideration.
Mr. Al-Khayyal in turn expressed
regular courses. Mr. Al-Gusaier also
requested the development of a new his high expectations of JCCP activities.
cooperation scheme that would allow He stated that Saudi Aramco has alonger-term onsite experience and responsibility of providing a stableguidance, and Mr. Kojima promised to supply of oil to the world, and must
explore the best means of responding maintain the world’s highest level ofto the request based on the foundation safe and stable operations. To this end,

At the Saudi Aramco Head Office
With Mr. Abdulaziz F. Al-Khayyal, Senior Vice President

14 • Topics •he hopes to send as many Saudi Aramco
personnel to participate in JCCP
regular courses, not only to acquire
technology and knowledge, but also togain first-hand experience in “Japan’s
wonderful corporate culture,” foundedon responsibility and discipline.
The meeting ended with the two
leaders agreeing that the successful
implementation of the recent tailormade seminar is merely the first step
toward the strengthening of cooperative
ties between the two organizations, andthat they shall build upon that successto deepen cooperative efforts based ona “face-to-face” relationship of mutual
trust.
Mr. Kojima again visited the Saudi
Aramco Head Office in the afternoon ofMarch 3, to meet with Mr. Adil A. AlTubayyeb, Vice President, Marketing,
Supply & Joint Venture Coordination.
Mr. Al-Tubayyeb played a central
role in establishing the Saudi Aramco
Tokyo Office, and possesses a deep
understanding of the relationshipbetween Saudi Arabia and Japan. He
took part in a lecture event in Japan
sub-hosted by JCCP last December, andspoke to attending executive officers
from energy-related companies inJapan, on the significance of JapanSaudi Arabia cooperation in securing
a stable supply of oil. Mr. Waleed H.
Al-Bedaiwi, General Manager, Saudi
Petroleum, Ltd., who had temporarily
returned to Saudi Arabia from Japan,
also joined the meeting.
In the meeting, Mr. Al-Tubayyeb

At the Saudi Aramco Head Office
With Mr. Adil A. Al-Tubayyeb, Vice President

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

explained that the population in the
Middle East is increasing so rapidly
today that the Greater Middle East
Region, composed of the traditional
Middle East countries and neighboring
countries, is certain to become a majoroil-consuming region in the near future.
As the Middle East region also has theworld’s largest hydrocarbon reserves, it
is poised to become a major supplier ofpetroleum and petrochemical products,
in addition to crude oil. As a result,
Mr. Al-Tubayyeb predicts that the
Middle East region will develop into
a global hydrocarbon trading hub.
This significant information came at
an opportune time for JCCP, as it ispresently in the process of creating anaction plan that identifies the directionof its efforts for strengthening relations
with the countries of the Middle East.
3. King Fahd University ofPetroleum and Minerals(KFUPM)
In the morning of March 3, Mr.
Kojima paid a courtesy call on H.E.
Dr. Khaled S. Al-Sultan, Rector of
KFUPM. The university has been acting
as JCCP’s partner in implementing
various technical cooperation projects,

including the HS-FCC
development project,a nd is a n i mpor t a nt
counterpart of JCCP’s in
Saudi Arabia.
After fondly
reminiscing about Dr.
Al-Sultan’s visit to Japanin FY2004 under JCCP’s
VIP Invitation Program,
Mr. Kojima expressed
h is g rat it ude to D r.
With H.E. Dr. Khaled S. Al-Sultan, Rector, at KFUPM
Al-Sultan, for warmly
receiving Dr. Hideshi
Hattori, Professor Emeritus at Hokkaido to spend more time to exchange views on
University, under the Long-ter m a wider range of issues than before, with
Research Dispatch Program, and for key persons in oil-related organizations
his cooperation in holding the Joint in major oil-producing countries. The
GCC-Japan Environment Symposium role of the Middle East is increasing inlast January. Dr. Al-Sultan graciously importance to Japan, as well as to theaccepted Mr. Kojima’s words of entire world, in securing a stable supply
appreciation, saying that building trust of oil. Expectations of JCCP have also
is the hardest part about establishing increased, accompanying this trend, andrelationships, but “JCCP and KFUPM cooperation requests have diversified.
are way past that stage,” and have entered JCCP intends to take into considerationa new stage where the two organizations the recent series of dialogues that Mr.
should strengthen their bonds based the Kojima has held with oil industry
foundation of mutual trust that they have leaders in the Middle East, as well as
built over the years.
various other relevant factors, to develop
The follow-up meetings held between new, enhanced cooperation schemes inJanuary and March allowed Mr. Kojima the future.
<by Hisayoshi Tanda, Administration Dept.>

TopicsJoint Symposium on Fuel Cell Technology
Held in Kuwait
On January 24, JCCP held a Joint
Symposium on Fuel Cell Technology
with Kuwait Institute for Scientific
Research (KISR).
The governments and major oilcompanies of oil-producing countries
in the Middle East region have been
focusing on higher value-added products
and have begun to turn their attention to
new energies as significant elements inthe future of oil.
In Kuwait, there is strong interest in

the fuel cell as a new type of energy, and
JCCP and KISR have been discussing
technical exchange and joint researchon the technology between Kuwait andJapan, since a few years ago. In responseto this trend, JCCP has consulted withJapan Petroleum Institute (JPI), theorganization entrusted to implement
the joint JCCP-Kuwait research andexchange symposium, in regard to
implementing a new symposium on fuelcell technology for Kuwait in FY2007.

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Dr. Naji Al-Mutairi, Director General of
KISR, delivering a welcome speech• Topics • 15

Dr. Naji Al-Mutairi, Director
General of KISR, Dr. Nader Al-Awadhi,
Deputy Director Information, and many
researchers attended the symposiumfrom KISR.
Dr. Koichi Eguchi, Professor at Kyoto
University, headed the Japanese team,which consisted of four lecturers. Mr.
Hideyuki Urata, First Secretary at the
Embassy of Japan in Kuwait, membersof the JPI secretariat, and Minoru
Horike, General Manager of the JCCP
Technical Cooperation Department,
also attended the symposium.
Dr. Eguchi and Horike gave opening
addresses, followed by a welcome
speech by Dr. Naji Al-Mutairi, before
commencing the actual presentation
session. The Japanese side delivered four
presentations, including Dr. Eguchi’s

keynote lecture, and the Kuwaiti side,
two presentations. The six presentations
covered a broad range of topics, froman overview of the fuel cell, to recent
research status of fuel cells and theirpractical applications, and invited
diverse questions from the participants.
The names of the speakers and the titlesof their presentation are shown below.
In addition to KISR, the co-hostof the symposium, participants from anumber of companies and institutions
in Kuwait also attended the symposium,including Kuwait Petroleum Corporation(KPC), Kuwait National Petroleum
Company (KNPC), Kuwait University,
the Ministry of Oil, the Ministryof Electricity & Water, and othergovernmental offices. The large turnout
displayed Kuwait’s strong interest in

Speakerfuel cells, and news of the symposium
received large coverage in the next day’s
edition of the local newspaper.
Finally, we would like to take thisopportunity to thank Dr. Abdulhameed
Al-Hashem, Director, PRSC, Dr. Meena
Marafi, Manager, Petroleum Refining
Department, and other members of
KISR, Dr. Eguchi, all speakers, andmembers of the JPI secretariat, for theirsupport and cooperation in preparing
and arranging for this symposium.
<by Minoru Horike,Technical Cooperation Dept.>

Presentation title

Dr. Koichi Eguchi
Kyoto University

Catalytic production of hydrogen andapplication to fuel cells

Mr. Jun Shiroma
National Institute of Advanced
Industrial Science and Technology

R&D on PEFC in Japan

Mr. Ayman Al-Qattan
KISR

Planned KISR fuel cell & hydrogentechnology research program

Mr. Akihiko Fukunaga
Nippon Oil Corporation

Development of petroleum fuel powered
PEMFC cogeneration systems forresidential use

Mr. Abdelrahman El Sherbini
KISR

Fuel cell based cogeneration system forcooling and power in buildings

Mr. Takayuki Osaki
Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd.

Development of the steam reforming
catalyst for fuel cell system

Local newspaper article of the seminar

Seminar scene

16 • Topics •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Dr. Koichi Eguchi delivering
an opening address

Personnel
Exchange

Tailor-made Program on Environmental
Management Held in Qatar
1. Background to the Seminar
In FY2007, the JCCP Training
Department stepped up its efforts topromote Expert Service (ES) programs
that are specially tailored to meet theneeds of each country, in line withthe country-specific action programfor major oil-producing countries,
which JCCP announced in FY2006. A
number of countries readily responded
to this proposal, and JCCP has so far
implemented four ES programs in three
countries. They included seminars
on “Process Control” in Russia,“Refinery Maintenance Management”
in Mexico, “Energy Saving at theRefinery” in Kuwait, and “Advanced
Process Control,” also in Kuwait. The
recent seminar on “Environmental
Management” that was held in Qatar
became the fifth ES program to be
implemented under the new scheme.
As requested by Qatar Petroleum(QP), we implemented a seminar on
Japan’s environmental management
technologies, from December 2 to 6,
2007. The seminar team was composedof Mr. Keisuke Matsukawa from
Chiyoda Corporation, Mr. Hiroaki
Igarashi from JGC Corporation, and Mr.
Tetsuji Kubota and myself, Kazuyoshi
Kamijyo, from the JCCP Training

Seminar participants

Department.

2. Overview of the Seminar
The seminar was implemented overa period of 5 days. On the first day,
Mr. Kubota and I gave a brief lecture
on “Introduction of JCCP,” with theaid of a DVD presentation and othersupplementary materials, followed bylectures on “Overview of Japan’s Oil
Industry,” “Heavy Oil Upgrading,”and “Clean Fuel Technologies.” On thesecond day, we lectured on “Refinery
E n e rg y Sav i ng,” “ New E n e rg yStrategies in Japan,” and “Overview ofEnvironmental Management in Japan.”On the third day, Mr. Igarashi gave afeature presentation on “Air Pollution
Management in Refineries,” and spoke

in detail about technologies for the
management and dispersion of SOx,
NOx, and other particulate substances.
On the fourth day, Mr. Matsukawa gavea presentation on “Soil and Groundwater
Treatment,” and discussed soil andgroundwater contamination, regulations
concerning oil content, remediation
technologies, soil surveys, and recycling
projects. On the fifth day of the seminar,
I lectured on “Future Environmental
Management Trends.”
Fifteen participants attended theseminar, with a high rate of attendance,from the first to last day of the seminar.
All participants filled out an evaluation
form at the end of the seminar, andindicated that the seminar was highly
beneficial. Many also indicated that theywould like to participate in a regular

Scenes of the seminar

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Personnel Exchange Programs • 17

course in Japan, in the future.
The participants took an active
part in the seminar, asking questions
and sharing views with each other.
The lecturers interpreted this to be anindication of their positive commitment
to gaining the most from the seminar.

3. Refinery Visit
After completing the seminar, theseminar team visited QP’s Mesaieed
Ref i ne r y, whe r e we exch a nge d
information with persons in chargeof environmental management at therefinery, and toured the refinery facilities
and control room. The spacious control
room boasted a modern console-type

DCS, which was operated by a small
number of operators and comparedfavorably with control rooms in Japan’s
refineries.

4. Summary
The successful implementation of
the seminar was made possible largely
through the effort of Mr. Sheikh Hamad
Saoud Hamad Al-Thani and staff
members of the QP Head Office, and
Mr. Abdulla Ismail Ahmad Hassan
Al-Hamadi, who generously acted
as our counterpart. We wish to also
acknowledge Mr. Ahmed Mohd Qassim,
HSE Manager, and other members of the
Mesaieed Refinery for their cooperation

Presentation of completion certificatesand valuable exchange of information.
Thank you all very much.
<by Kazuyoshi Kamijyo, Training Dept.>

Personnel
Exchange

Tailor-made Program on Refinery Plant
Maintenance Held in Saudi Arabia
1. Background
Saudi Arabia is indisputably theworld’s greatest producer of crude oil,with its Ghawar Oil Field said to containthe world’s largest crude oil reserve.
As a major supplier of crude oil, Saudi
Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco),the country’s state-run oil company, is,and will continue to be, a dominatingpresence in the global crude oil market.
Today, Saudi Arabian crude accounts forroughly 30% of Japan’s total crude oil
imports, making Saudi Arabia Japan’s
leading supplier of crude oil.
For Japan to secure a stable supplyof crude oil, Saudi Arabia is certainly
becoming ever more important to Japan.
Yet, no JCCP-initiated Expert Service(ES) programs have been implemented
in the country for close to 20 years,
since 1988. Seeking to establish a closer
relationship with Saudi Aramco, Mr.
Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of
JCCP, approached Mr. Abdulaziz F.

18 • Personnel Exchange Programs •Participants of the seminar from various Saudi Aramco refineries (closing ceremony)

Al-Khayyal, Senior Vice President,
Refining, Marketing & International,
last January, and held a policy dialogue
on future JCCP cooperation. As aresult of the meeting, the two leadersagreed to commence working-level
consultations on the implementation of
a tailor-made program at Saudi Aramco.
Soon thereafter, Mr. Abdul Majeed
H. G., Supervisor, Human Resources
Development, who is JCCP’s counterpart
at Saudi Aramco, participated in a

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

JCCP Program Seminar held in July
2007, so JCCP took the opportunity of
his visit to Japan to discuss the tailormade program in detail. In response to
Saudi Aramco’s request for a seminaron refinery plant maintenance, JCCP
organized and implemented the seminarfrom February 28 to March 7, 2008.
Members from Japan included
four lecturers from the JCCP Training
D e p a r t m e n t ( M e s s r s . Sh i n t a r oMiyawaki, Akio Higashi, Kazumasa

Area around the seminar venue(Left) The coastline extends north, all the way to Iraq; (Right) Saudi Aramco’s safe and attractive guest house

Nakazawa, and Fumihiro Tone) and an
external expert (Mr. Naomi Fujisawa,
Shin Nippon Machinery Co., Ltd. Kure
Works). The members each lectured ona specific topic.
As a matter worthy of special
mention, the seminar was honored toreceive a speech by Mr. Kojima, who
had also been visiting Saudi Aramcoat that time. Mr. Kojima’s speechpresented a rare opportunity for theparticipants to reaffirm the significanceof JCCP activities and the importanceof the cooperative relationship between
JCCP and Saudi Aramco.

to the JCCP team during their stay in
Saudi Arabia.
The seminar venue was located ina corner of Najmah Camp, at the tip ofa large peninsula far removed from thecity center. The camp also provided
simple yet clean and comfortableaccommodations for the Japanese
lecturers. The seminar began andproceeded smoothly as planned, thanks
to efficient preparations for receiving the
JCCP lecturers and seminar participants,
as well as for processing identification
procedures and other paperwork, andwas able to successfully achieve its
intended purpose.

3. Details of the SeminarT h e s e m i n a r wa s o r ig i n a l ly
planned to cover three lecture topics(3 days), but in response to a strong
request from Mr. Fareed Z. Kamfar,
RT Refinery Maintenance Manager,
during preliminary discussions, twomore topics (2 days) were added(diagnosis, inspection, and repair ofmain rotary equipment, and refinery
safety management), and adjustments
were made with respect to the selectionof an external lecturer. After selecting
an external lecturer and making thenecessary arrangements with the

2. Overview of the Seminar
The Ras Tanura Refinery is Saudi
Aramco’s largest refinery, located on
the east coast of Saudi Arabia, and Ras
Tanura Port is known as a major port
from which crude oil from the world’s
largest Ghawar Oil Field is shipped to
the world. Crude oil tankers bound forJapan also leave from this port.
The seminar took place in anauditor ium in the HR D (Human
Resource Development) Departmentbuilding, located in close proximity
to the Ras Tanura Refinery, with theattendance of 22 personnel from all
the 5 refineries belonging to Saudi
Aramco, including those on the west
coast of Saudi Arabia. Mr. Abdul
Majeed, JCCP’s counterpart at Saudi
Aramco, gave his full cooperation
to the seminar, from making all thenecessary arrangements, to attending

Seminar lecturers with Mr. Abdul Majeed H.G., Supervisor,
Human Resources Development (center)

Seminar scene

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Personnel Exchange Programs • 19

Exchange of commemorative gifts
Mr. Mohammad A. Al Omair, General Manager (right), and
Mr. Fareed Z. Kamfar, Refinery Maintenance Manager (left)

cooperating company, the seminar
was re-scheduled to cover a five-day
period (extending the seminar duration)
featuring one lecture presentation a day,by different lecturers.
The seminar covered the following
lecture topics.
• Day 1: Rotary machinery
maintenance management• Day 2: Essential technology andmaintenance of rotating machines• Day 3: Maintenance managementof Japanese refinery• Day 4: Static equipment trouble &countermeasures in Japan• Day 5: Refinery activities for safety
management
T he le ct u r er s ea ch le ct u r e don their respective topic, based on
their achievements in technologicalimprovement and abundant experience inJapan, and elicited enthusiastic responses
from the participants. JCCP hopesthat the knowledge of TPM activities
and various improvement measures inJapanese refineries that the participants

Gift presented to Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP,
in commemoration of the seminar

have gained through the seminar will be
put to practical use in enhancing Saudi
Aramco refineries in the future.
In response to a questionnaire thatwas handed out to the participants on
the final day, all of them indicatedthat they would like to participate ina JCCP regular course some day, andprovided a bright prospect for future
JCCP activities.

4. Evaluation and Impressionsof the Seminar
The implementation of the JCCPinitiative ES seminar for the first timein roughly 20 years was largely madepossible by the generous support ofMr. Fareed Z. Kamfar, RT Refinery
Maintenance Manager, and Mr. Abdul
Majeed, JCCP’s counterpart at Saudi
Aramco. Their valuable advice andcooperation, from the preparations of
the seminar to its proceedings, weregreatly instrumental to the successful
completion of the seminar. JCCP
extends its deepest appreciation andgratitude to them.
In terms of the fact that the seminar
period coincided with Mr. Kojima’s
meeting with the head of the Ras Tanura
Refinery, that Mr. Kojima delivered amessage at the seminar in person andboosted the participants’ motivation, andthat the timing of the seminar was ideal
for promoting JCCP activities to the Ras
Tanura Refinery, which is considered tobe the central facility of Saudi Aramco,
the seminar provided the perfect ending
to the FY2007 programs.
With the implementation of thisseminar, JCCP has added anotherpage to its long history of cooperation
activities, and sees this achievement
as an indication of a bright future. In
this respect, JCCP sincerely hopes thatthe success of this seminar will lead tothe further development of customized
programs in the future.
Lastly, JCCP would like to extend its
deepest appreciation to everyone who
generously cooperated in the planningand implementation of the seminar.
Thank you very much.
<by Shintaro Miyawaki, Training Dept.>

Auditorium where Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP, delivered a special speech

20 • Personnel Exchange Programs •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Presentation of completion certificatesPersonnel
Exchange

Tailor-made Program on Human Resource
Management & Development
Held in Japan for an Iranian GroupOn Febr ua r y 19, 20 08, JCCP
welcomed a group of 16 members from
Iran who came to Japan to participate
in an 11-day Study Tour on “Human
Resource Management & Development”(ST-22-07), scheduled for the period
from February 19 to 29. The group
was composed of human resource(HR) managers from Iran’s Ministryof Petroleum, National Iranian Oil
Company (NIOC), National Iranian Oil
Refining & Distribution Co. (NIORDC),
National Petrochemical Co. (NPC), andNational Iranian Gas Co. (NIGC).

1. Background
Since FY2007, JCCP has beenpromoting tailor-made courses for majoroil-producing countries, as one of its newpolicies. Last July, when the General
Manager of the JCCP Operations
Department visited Iran to propose theimplementation of tailor-made courses,
NIORDC had requested a Study Tour
(ST; training course held in Japan forparticipants from a specific country) on
Human Resource Management (HRM).
It appears that enhancement of humanresource management capacities in
the oil refining sector has become anurgent issue, as the privatization (within
5 years) of Iran’s refineries has been
officially approved during FY2007.
NIORDC later modified its request,
to also include the theme of Human
Resource Development (HRD), in
addition to HRM, so we designed andimplemented a course that focuses onboth HRM and HRD issues. With theparticipation of HR managers from
Iran’s Ministry of Petroleum and otheroil-related institutions, it was said that
Mr. Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh,

Study Tour participants with JGC Corporation Head Office andthe Yokohama Minato-Mirai district in the background

Deputy Minister of Petroleum andPresident of NIORDC, will be keeping
an interested eye on the course.

2. Overview of the Course
The participants first received
lectures on a general overview of HRM
and HRD at JCCP Headquarters, aswith regular courses, then visited four
companies, including a refinery, tostudy actual HRM and HRD measures
implemented by those companies.
(Lectures at JCCP)・ The oil industry and the physicaldistribution sector in Japan・ History of Japanese-style HRM andcorporate training(Onsite training and study themes)・ Catalysts & Chemicals, Ind. Co., Ltd.
(CCIC), Kitakyushu Office: Aging
employees and labor management in
an R&D-oriented company
・ Nippon Petroleum Refining Co.,
Ltd., Negishi Refinery: The humanresource, evaluation, and training

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

systems in a Japanese oil company
・ JGC Corporation, Head Office:
HRM and corporate education in anengineering company
・ Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd., TechnicalTraining Center (Chiba): HRM andTPM in a refinery

3. Major Study Themes(1) History of Japanese-style HRM
and corporate training
This lecture was given for 3 days,
divided into the following 4 (HRM) +1 (HRD) parts.
(Part 1) History of Japan and the basic
mentality of the Japanese(Part 2) Japa n’s r apid p o st-wa r
economic growth and unique
HRM system(Part 3) Social changes in Japan today
and changes in the HRM of
Japanese companies(Part 4) Future issues and direction of
HRM in Japanese companies(Part 5) Corporate training in Japanand future issues• Personnel Exchange Programs • 21

“Nowadays, Japanese-style HRM is...” (JCCP)

On the first day of lectures, we
explained Japan’s unique teamwork
spirit and the driving forces behindthe high economic growth in Japanesesociety, from the perspective of two
HRM systems unique to Japan-the
lifetime employment and seniority
systems. On the second day, we lectured
on social and corporate changes inJapan today, the introduction of aperformance-based system, and futureissues. On the third day, we presented
an overview of HRD, with a focus on
corporate training.
This 5-part overview formed thecrux of the course, and therefore
received a high level of interest fromthe participants.
(2) Catalysts & Chemicals, Ind. Co.,
Ltd. (CCIC), Kitakyushu Officeand Wakamatsu Plant:
Labor management in an
R&D-oriented company
To avoid HRM discussions that

may overlap with other companies,
the st udy theme focused on theeffective management of an employee
composition that displays diverse
academic backgrounds—a composition
that occurs because the company has
both research laboratories and plants—
and specific labor issues that arise fromthis situation.
(3) Nippon Petroleum Refining Co.,
Ltd., Negishi Refinery:
Human resource and training
systems in a major oilcompany
A classroom lecture, which isusually held at the head office of thecompany, was conducted for the firsttime at its refinery. The study theme
centered on details of the company’s
HRM and human resource evaluation
systems, as well as on both an overview
and the specifics of its training system.
Compared to a normal classroom
lecture, an introduction to the refineryShowered with questions(Nippon Petroleum Refining Co., Ltd., Negishi Refinery)

22 • Personnel Exchange Programs •“Here’s what I think...” (CCIC Kitakyushu Office)and a tour of the facilities lent variety
to the program, and made an impression
on the participants.
(4) JGC Corporation, Head
Office: HRM and HRD in anengineering company
A brief outline of the HRM system
was given in reference to the company’ssalary and evaluation systems, followedby discussions on the status of its
employment system, an overview of
the training system, and career paths of
employees in an engineering company.
In response to our request for a
program on both HRM and HRD
issues, JGC gave a clear and concise
presentation that covered both topics
separately, in a balanced manner.
Toward the end of the program, theparticipants learned about separating
people into “types” based on selfevaluation and other-evaluations, in theform of a card game, and enjoyed a funlearning experience.

Checking one’s own “type” through a card game
(JGC Corporation, Head Office)

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

(5) Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.,Technical Training Center(Chiba): HRM and TPM in arefinery
The study theme centered on Idemitsu
Kosan’s basic principles of careerdevelopment and the concept of total
productive management (TPM), throughan introduction of case examples. Then,after a brief description of the company’s
HRD system, a presentation titled “A
day of a refinery manager” presented
pictures of a refinery manager’s daily
routines, which include making anappearance on the shopfloor every day,and other uniquely Japanese workplace
practices.

4. Summary
The members of the study groupconsisted of 16 HR managers from
the Ministry of Petroleum, NIOC,
NIORDC, NPC, NIOPDC, and NIGC.
Iranians are generally said to be earnest
and honest, and we found this to be true;
the members of the group were model
participants who displayed gentlemanly

manner and open
fr iendliness. It
seems there weremany macro-level
questions, perhaps
because of theparticipants’ highpositions within
their organization,
but there were also
many technicalquestions at theObserving a technical training session for new employees(Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd., Technical Training Center)
facilities visited,f rom memb er s
who originally began their careers as
According to evaluation forms filled
an engineer. Therefore, though the focus out by all participants at the end ofof the course was specific, diverse topics the course, the majority of them werethat were directly and indirectly related extremely satisfied with the course.
to HRM were actively discussed at an They indicated, for example, that theextremely high level.
course would certainly be useful in
The 11-day course was a productive fulfilling their responsibilities, and thatcourse, with an English-proficient the program content was much better
member translating important points than they expected.
of the programs into Persian for theWe hope the participants haveother members, and an active course, returned to Iran with a favorable
in which the members frequently impression of Japan, and hope that theengaged in heated discussions amongst course has played a small role in Japan’s
themselves.
efforts to secure a stable supply of oil.
<by Akio Hoshino, Training Dept.>

My Impressions of the Study Tour
Speech delivered by the leader of the ST group (Mr. Mohammad S. Bakhshian)in the closing ceremony

On behalf of all members of theStudy Tour, I would like to express

together reflected in the management styles andleadership philosophy in JCCP.

our appreciation and sincere thanksThis closing ceremony is not the end of our program,

to Mr. Kojima and all other JCCP staff for what we learned

however. I believe that the course has marked theand received during our stay in your beautiful country.

beginning of a new era in building stronger, everlasting

Unfortunately, I missed the first three days of therelations between Iran, Japanese companies, and JCCP.

program, due to urgent obligations that had arisen priorAlmost every night, we reviewed what we studied

to my departure to Japan. Nevertheless, the course wasthat day, as well as discussed our impressions, andunforgettable and so impressive that it will remain in myconcluded that your nation—Japan and the Japanesememory as one of the best courses I have ever participatedpeople—could be symbolized by the following terms:

in, with the best group of people whom I can proudly

Unity, Uniformity, Honesty, Commitment, Faithfulness,call friends.

Challenging, Innovative, Creative, Teamwork, etc.

During the program, we were impressed withJapanese history, culture, and traditions, which wereThank you again, and I hope to see you in Iran oneof these days.

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Personnel Exchange Programs • 23

Personnel
Exchange

Tailor-made Program on
Practical Technology for Energy Saving
Held in Japan for Kuwait (KNPC)
1. BackgroundIn recent years, JCCP has placed
primary emphasis on promoting tailormade courses. As part of that scheme,
an Expert Service (ES) program (aprogram conducted by Japanese experts
dispatched to an oil-producing country)
on “Energy Saving at the Refinery” (ES20-07) was implemented in late October
2007. JCCP took the opportunity of the
ES program to specifically propose aStudy Tour (ST) program (a program
held in Japan for a group of participantsfrom a specific country) on the same
theme, and the proposal was acceptedby Kuwait National Petroleum Company(KNPC).
The ST program was held over a 10day period, from February 26 to March
6, 2008, under the theme, “Practical
Technology for Energy Saving (ST-2107). Today, many countries are actively
engaging in energy-saving measuresat refineries, in response to increasing
global concern over global warming
and environmental issues. Kuwait iscertainly no exception, and KNPC
has even established a project team topromote company-wide energy-saving
measures. Five engineers each from
KNPC’s Shuaiba and Mina Abdulla
Refineries participated in the recent
program. The participants were carefully
selected, in consideration of their fieldof expertise and career background, andcomposed a well-balanced group.

2. Program Content
The program was roughly divided
into two parts. The first part consisted oflectures at JCCP Headquarters, by both
JCCP lecturers and external lecturers.

24 • Personnel Exchange Programs •At Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Yokohama Works/Kanazawa Plant

The second part consisted of onsite
training, aimed at providing first-handexperience in studying technologies andactivities at various oil facilities. Visitswere made to two refineries and two
equipment manufacturers.
(1) Lectures at JCCP・ Present state of Japan’s oil industry
・ Refinery energy-saving measures
・ Latest energy-saving technologies (I)Improvement of heat efficiency
by cogeneration; thermal/electricenergy balance based on combined
cycle systems; energy-saving
methods for VVVF and otherrotary equipment; high temperature
combustion technology (HiCOT)・ Latest energy-saving technologies(II)
Overview of pinch technology;energy-saving designs for plants; newheat converter models; plant power
recovery systems
The lectures on the latest energysaving technologies, which provided

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

details of the functions and performanceof the combined cycle system, HiCOT,
and other advanced technologies,
seemed to be highly appreciated by theparticipants, particularly because to
many of them, it was the first time they
have learned about the technologies inso much detail.
(2) Onsite training• Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd., Yokkaichi
Refinery
The participants received lectures on
the configuration of refinery equipment,
framework and systems for promoting
energy saving, and an introduction
on various energy saving activities,

Lecture on the latest energy saving
technologies (JCCP)At Cosmo Oil’s Yokkaichi Refinery

Lecture session at TLV International

Lecture session at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’
Yokohama Works

Training at Toa Oil’s Keihin Refinery

followed by a tour of the production
site. By observing actual onsite energy
saving and small maintenance activities,
the participants were able to gain helpful
insight and tips on improving energy
saving activities at KNPC.
•TLV International, Inc.,
Kakogawa Head Office
The participants received lectureson the thermal dynamic properties,
applications, and functions of steam,and on the basic principle, structure,and maintenance management ofsteam traps. They were also shown ademonstration of equipment operations
and received a tour of the equipment
manufacturing shopfloor. The precise,easy-to-understand lectures, given
in an impressively well-organizedfacility, were highly appreciated by allparticipants.
•

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.,
Yokohama Works/Kanazawa Plant
The participants received lectures on

various technologies, trouble cases, andimprovement examples related to boiler
facilities, as well as on the cogeneration
system and improvement measures
for steam turbines. The lectures were
followed by a tour of the equipment
manufacturing shopfloor, which was
buzzing and busy with activity. The tour
provided a precious experience for theparticipants, most of whom had neverbefore observed the manufacture oflarge-scale boilers and turbines.
•

Toa Oil Co., Ltd., Keihin Refinery
To a c qu i r e pr a ct ica l energ ysaving technologies, the participantslearned about specific procedures for
implementing energy saving activities,
as well as details of the refinery’s pastachievements and specific examples
related to energy savings, and exchanged
views with refinery members. A lot of theirquestions dealt with the performance andcharacteristics of the heavy oil thermal
cracking process unit, Flexi Coker, whichis the core unit of the refinery.

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

3. Evaluation and Impressionsof the Program
Though the program spanned a short
10-day period, visits to two refineries
and two equipment manufacturers
provided not only an overview ofenergy saving technologies, but also
many opportunities for discussions
and exchanges of views with Japaneseengineers. In this respect, many
participants gave high ratings to theprogram coordination and arrangement.
More t ha n ha l f t he pa r ticipa nts
mentioned that they would have liked
the program to cover a longer period,of perhaps about two weeks, and thatthey wished they had more time at
the refineries, to hold discussions
particularly with young engineers. Yet,they indicated that the time spent at eachsite visited was largely satisfactory.
In regard to the content of thelectures, the introduction of trouble
cases and their countermeasures was
especially well-received. A participant• Personnel Exchange Programs • 25

gave a representative opinion to the effectthat, as maintaining the performanceof various facilities and equipment
is extremely important to promoting
energy savings, it would be ideal if
JCCP would incorporate these contents
in future courses to a larger extent.
Additionally, a number of participants

commonly stated that they have not only
gained technical knowledge through theprogram, but have also gained a strong
impression of the social norms andstandards that support Japan’s industries
and society.
KNPC, as well as all other refineriesin Middle East oil-producing countries,

will be making further efforts topromote energy saving activities, alongwith measures to improve capacities andincrease their corporate value, in the
future. To respond to their needs, JCCP
will carefully heed the requests andopinions received in this ST program,to improve future programs.
<by Yoshiaki Ueno, Training Dept.>

Participant’s VoicePetroleum Marketing andPhysical Distribution(IT-4-07: January 21 – January 31, 2008)
Mr. Hytham Adnan J. Al-Saati (Saudi Aramco / Saudi Arabia)

Participating in the Petroleum Marketing and PhysicalDistribution course (IT-4-07) was an eye opener to me inthree ways. First, I was introduced to Japan as a nation
and as a culture. Second, I gained a fresh perspective of
the oil industry and its future trends. Third, I was able toexperience the flow of oil in detail from its arrival at theoil staging terminal in Kagoshima, south of Japan, all theway to the vehicle at a service station outside of Tokyo.
I have seen that two factors make Japan an interesting
environment to learn about petroleum marketing andphysical distribution. Japan is the second largest economy
in world, and crude oil is its largest import commodity,
which fuels that economy. Both factors make this country

At Nippon Oil Staging Terminal’s Kiire Terminal

an excellent arena for observing how a complex anddynamic fuel production system works. Japan is also aleader in the world in terms of transportation means

to aircrafts. We stood under the wings of a passenger

and industrial activities. Knowing that more than 97%

airplane that was scheduled to take off, and witnessedof refined products is manufactured within the borders

the refueling activity. In Yokohama, we were invitedof Japan indicates the size and level of sophistication of

to a lube oil filling facility, which produces numerous

its refining industry.

grades of finished lube oil for retail. We also witnessed

During the course, we visited an oil staging terminal

how lorry trucks are loaded with fuels in a bulk plant.

in Kagoshima, where we boarded a crude oil carrier andFinally, we visited a typical car service station and a service

saw the inside of a crude oil storage tank. We also saw

station training facility, which are the final destinations

the environmentally conscious efforts of the terminal toin the journey of petroleum products. This was a truly

reduce pollutants using an on-site vapor recovery processintensive tour. Most fascinating was that at each location

plant to recover vapor during loading. We next traveled

we visited, the host company was completely open to

to Haneda Airport, the fourth largest airport in the world

sharing information, responding to our questions, andin terms of passenger volume, to observe jet refuelingeven allowing us to see, photograph and record virtuallyoperations. We specifically saw how a sophisticatedthe entire facility.

hydrant system is used to effectively supply jet fuel26 • Personnel Exchange Programs •Finally, and equally as interesting as the rest of the

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Participant’s Voicecourse, we were introduced to the cultural and humanand Physical Distribution course from my perspective. I

resources side of the country. A journey through Japan’s

honestly did not know what to expect from the program

history highlighted the roots of the current lifestyle,prior to arriving in Japan. However, the efforts andmajor historical events, and how the current businessdedication of the JCCP management and staff members

management practices originated. We realized thatraised my level of satisfaction beyond what I can describe

the significance of Japan’s impressive accomplishments

in words. I would like to dedicate my sincere thanks to alllies not in what the Japanese did to achieve those

who have contributed to this program, and above all, toaccomplishments, but how they achieved them.

Mr. Yasuo Tabei and Mr. Akio Hoshino, for their care andThis was a brief description of the Petroleum Marketingcompany during every minute of this journey.

Energy Saving for Profitability Improvement(TR-18-07: February 5 – February 22, 2008)
Mr. I Gusti Bagus Prihanta (PT. PERTAMINA / Indonesia)

I am writing this message on behalf of the 15 participants

activities. Through these visits, we were not only able toin the Energy Saving for Profitability Improvement course,

gain a better understanding of energy saving activities,

who come from 13 different countries.

but also of Japanese manners and culture.

I am fortune that I was given the great opportunity

We deeply appreciated the opportunity to explore theto attend this excellent course, during a great season

beauty of nature in Japan, and to catch a glimpse of Japan’s(middle of winter), in a wonderful country, and with kindhistory. We also learned about 13 different cultures, andnew friends. I sincerely thank the JCCP management andenjoyed some of the friendly misunderstandings that

staff for arranging this valuable training course. I would

occurred among us participants.

also like to extend my special gratitude to Mr. Kojima,

We were also impressed and completely taken with

Executive Director, and to TR-18-07 coordinators, Messrs.

the politeness and impeccable manners of the Japanese

Satake, Kubota, Kamijyo, Takahashi and Ueno, not only

people. Their punctuality and commitment to constantly

for their support and great efforts, but also for their

keep to their schedule, in particular, made me promise to

excellent guidance and assistance during our travels tomyself to strive to do the same, back home in my country,

different companies.

Indonesia.

As most of us have come from tropical countries, weFinally, I would like to thank everyone at JCCP for theirwere excited to be greeted by snow and cold weather onunderstanding and kind tolerance for the diverse cultural

our first visit to Japan. Needless to say, we enjoyed our first

backgrounds of the participants.

experience with snow, which we had only seen on television
before. It was even more beautiful than we imagined.

Domo arigato gozaimashita. Sayonara, Sampai Jumpa.
God bless us all.

The course content was also exceptional, providing
us with abundant knowledge and new technologies
regarding energy saving. We specifically learned about
Japanese Economy, Energy Saving at a Refinery, Japanese
Oil Industry, Recent Technology for Energy Saving, andPinch Technology, performed simulation training, anddiscussed case studies.
During this beneficial and excellent course, we went tovarious cities in Japan, from Tokyo to Yokohama, Himeji,
Fukuoka and Nagasaki. We visited leading oil and gas
companies, steam strap manufacturer, and a desalination
plant and heavy industry equipment manufacturer,
who shared with us their experiences in energy saving

At Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.’s
Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

• Personnel Exchange Programs • 27

JCCP Regular Courses Completed in January – March 2008

TR-17-07

Quality Management of Refinery Products

Period:January 15 – February 1, 2008

No. of participants:

16

Country of participants: China, Colombia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Libya, Mexico,
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Vietnam,
Yemen

IT-4-07

Petroleum Marketing and Physical Distribution

Period:January 21 – January 31, 2008

No. of participants:

14

Country of participants: Colombia, Indonesia, Iran, Kuwait, Libya, Mexico,
Saudi Arabia, UAE

TR-18-07

Energy Saving for Profitability Improvement

Period:February 5 – February 22, 2008

No. of participants:

15

Country of participants: China, Colombia, Indonesia, Iran, Kuwait, Libya,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Thailand,
Vietnam, Yemen

TR-19-07
Period:Advanced Inspection Techniques and Diagnosis for
Static Equipment
February 5 – February 22, 2008

No. of participants:

13

Country of participants: Indonesia, Iran, Kuwait, Mexico, Nigeria, Qatar,
Thailand, Vietnam

TR-20-07

Advanced Process Control on DCS

Period:February 5 – February 22, 2008

No. of participants:

12

Country of participants: China, Colombia, Indonesia, Iran, Libya,
Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Thailand, Vietnam

Total: 70 participants

28 • Personnel Exchange Programs •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

TechnicalCooperation

The 9th Kuwait-Japan Joint Symposium

Symposium venue: KISR auditorium

JCCP and Kuwait Institute for
Scientific Research (KISR) jointly
hosted the 9th Kuwait-Japan Joint
Symposium this past January 22 and 23,

2008. The symposium was held in anauditorium at KISR, under the theme of“Heavy Oil Processing Technologies.”
Since FY2005, the symposium has been

Name and affiliated organization

held annually, under subcontract byJapan Petroleum Institute (JPI).
Given the high level of interest in
the symposium by Kuwait National

Presentation title

Prof. Sachio Asaoka
The University of Kitakyushu

Hydrorefining and hydrogenation catalysts for heavy oil

Prof. Yasuaki Okamoto
Shimane University

Thermal stability of cobalt molybdenum desulfurization
catalysts

Prof. Mikio Miyake
Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Heavy oil composition analysis (using FT-ICR MS)

Prof. Takao Masuda
Hokkaido University Graduate School

Heavy oil cracking using zirconia carrier iron oxide

Mr. Mitsuru Yoshita
Junior Chief Researcher, Petroleum Technology Center,
Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.

Development of heavy oil hydrocracking catalysts

Mr. Asa’ad Ahmad E. Al-Saad,
Deputy Chairman of KNPC

Prof. Sachio Asaoka

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

Dr. Naji Mohammed Al-Mutairi,
Director General• Technical Cooperation • 29

Petroleum Company (KNPC), Mr.
Farouk Al-Zanki, KNPC Chairman,
was initially scheduled to deliver a
special opening address. However, due
to an urgent circumstance, Mr. Asa’ad
Ahmad E. Al-Saad, Deputy Chairman& Deputy Managing Director of Mina
Al-Ahmadi Refinery, gave an address onbehalf of Mr. Al-Zanki, saying that thisyear’s theme is a highly timely theme,
given today’s situation in Kuwait’s oil
industry.
From the Japanese side, Prof. Sachio
Asaoka, as leader of the group of speakers
from Japan, gave an opening speech on
the significant role of the Kuwait closer
together symposium in bringing Japanand in the spirit of cooperation. From
the KISR side, Dr. Naji Mohammed
Al-Mutairi, Director General, thanked
all participants for their attendance, andexpressed his strong hopes to implementa successful symposium.
The theme of “Heavy Oil Processing
Technologies” was selected as a highly
specialized theme directly relating tomeasures for processing Kuwait crude,
which is expected to become even heavier
in the future. The theme attracted strong
interest from the Kuwaiti side, and drew
close to 70 participants to the seminar,
including engineers from KNPC’s threerefineries.
T he sy mp osiu m fe at u r e d 13

presentations: 7 presentations, including
2 keynote lectures, by Japanese speakers,
and 6 presentations by Kuwaiti speakers.
The speakers also invited and engaged in
active discussions with the audience.
T he Japa nese sp ea ker s werecomposed of 5 members who haveachieved significant research results inthe field of heavy oil processing catalysts,
including 4 university professors and acorporate researcher.
T he next Kuwa it-Japa n Joi nt
Symposium is scheduled to be heldin January 2009, under the theme,“Desulfurization and New Fuels.”<by Kazuhisa Okumura,
Technical Cooperation Dept.>

Technical
Cooperation

Mr. Saad A. Al-Kubaisi, Manager at QP,
Visits Japan
Under the FY2007 JCCP VIP
Invitation Program, JCCP had invited
Mr. Saad A. Al-Kubaisi, Manager,
Corporate HSE, Qatar Petroleum (QP),
to Japan, from February 5 to 9, 2008.
The visit was realized in response to arequest made by Mr. Al-Kubaisi in his
meeting with Mr. Katsuo Yokoyama,
Managing Director of JCCP, when Mr.
Yokoyama visited QP last November.
Mr. Al-Kubaisi’s cooperation was
greatly instrumental in holding the

GCC-Japan Environment Symposiumwith QP in February 2007. In FY2006,
he supported JCCP’s proposal to QP
for the joint implementation of thesymposium, by personally explaining
the details of the proposal to H.E.
Abdullah Al-Attiya, Minister of Energy& Industry and Chairman of QP, andobtaining the minister’s approval. Mr.
Al-Kubaisi also acted as the chief
executive in charge of the symposium on
the QP side, and brought the symposium

Sharing views with Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive Director of JCCP

30 • Technical Cooperation •JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

to a successful completion.
On February 6 and 7, Mr. Al-Kubaisi
participated in the JCCP International
Symposium, during which he met
with Mr. Mikio Kojima, Executive
Director of JCCP, to discuss futurecooperation between JCCP and QP.
On February 8, he held discussions
with environmental experts in Japan,
accompanying Dr. Ali Hamed Al-Mulla,
Manager, Corporate Environment andSustainable Development, QP, who

At Nippon Oil Corporation

At the Petroleum Association of Japan(left: Mr. Nishikawa, Adviser;right: Mr. Nishigaki, Senior Counselor)came to Japan as one of the panelists inthe symposium. In the morning of the
8th, Mr. Al-Kubaisi and Dr. Al-Mulla
visited the Petroleum Association ofJapan (PAJ) and exchanged views onenergy-saving measures and global
warming countermeasures at Japaneserefineries. In the afternoon, they visited
Nippon Oil Corporation and discussed
environmental issues after receiving abrief summary of the company’s CSR(Corporate Social Responsibility) report

At the Petroleum Association of Japan(left: Dr. Ali Hamed Al-Mulla, Manager, QP)

and an introduction of its environmental
activities.
Through the invitation, JCCP has
offered Mr. Al-Kubaisi an opportunity
to enhance his understanding of JCCP
activities, as well as to witness Japan’s
latest environmental technologies, andto broaden his views about the energy
situation, in particular the status of oil
in Japan. Mr. Al-Kubaisi’s visit wasalso extremely significant in termsof the fact that a key leader in the

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008

oil industry in a major oil-producing
country has deepened and increased his
understanding and trust in Japan.
We wou ld l i ke t o t a ke t h i sopportunity to report to PAJ and Nippon
Oil Corporation that Mr. Al-Kubaisi’s
visit has had tremendous meaning
to Japan’s oil industry, and to thankeveryone who warmly welcomed his
visit to Japan.
<by Koichi Io,
Technical Cooperation Dept.>• Technical Cooperation • 31

Personnel Changes
Outgoing Personnel

Incoming Personnel

Keiichi SAEGUSA

Teruhiko SASAKI

Haruhide HAYABE

Kazuo KOJIMA

Nobuyuki TANEDA

Shoichiro YAGI

Training Department

Technical Cooperation
Department

Nobuyuki SUYAMAJapan Cooperation Center, Petroleum (JCCP)
Headquarters
Sunshine 60 Building 58F, 3-1-1 Higashi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo 170-6058, Japan• Administration Department• Operations Department• Training Department• Technical Cooperation Department

TEL. +81-3-5396-6000
TEL. +81-3-5396-6001
TEL. +81-3-5396-6909
TEL. +81-3-5396-8021

FAX. +81-3-5396-6006
FAX. +81-3-5396-6006
FAX. +81-3-5396-6006
FAX. +81-3-5396-8015

Overseas Offices• Middle East Office#904, Al-Ghaith Office Tower, Hamdan St.,
P.O. Box 51828, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.
TEL. +971-2-627-4410 FAX. +971-2-626-2166

URL: http://www.jccp.or.jp

32 • Announcement •• Riyadh Office
Al-Dahlawi Building, King Fahad Rd., Tahlia St., Olaya,
P.O. Box 61356, Riyadh 11565, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
TEL. +966-1-462-5121 FAX. +966-1-461-0983

E-mail: webmaster@jccp.or.jp

JCCP NEWS No. 100 May 2008