Project Manager Nader Al Ibrahim on Overcoming the Challenges at Jubail
In the latest in our series of Breakbulk Throwbacks, project manager Nader Al Ibrahim offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into his leadership of SABIC’s expansion of the Hadeed iron and steel plant in Jubail.
From Issue 1, 2025 of Breakbulk Magazine
In 2003, during a pivotal lunch meeting with Atos Origin’s Company officials, SABIC executive management unexpectedly announced, “Nader, you will be leading the groundbreaking Hadeed Expansion Project.” This significant project was entrusted to me, a seasoned professional who previously served as the general manager of Hadeed Central Maintenance, Engineering Utility and Services.
Hadeed is a fully integrated iron and steel company in Jubail Industrial City, Saudi Arabia, producing over 5,000 tons of finished products each year. The Hadeed Expansion Project had its share of challenges, which I had to navigate from its inception. People were unavailable to team up and help; there were no visas to recruit international expatriates and no offices.
Information on the precise tonnage to be produced and the project’s location should have been provided. Is expansion inside Hadeed premises or outside Hadeed? Each decision positively and negatively would influence the cost, capabilities and possibility of executing the project.
Only SABIC could organize the necessary funds for the project, and I had to submit the proper studies to SABIC for approval. This included all significant decisions regarding producing tonnage, execution timeframe and start-up time. I had to manage all the requirements with whatever resources I had available.
Despite the government’s conservative visa policies at the time, we were determined to assemble a team of top-notch engineers and finance professionals.
An intensive search of private industry took place. We found many spare visas that led to an extensive recruitment process, and successfully hired over 35 skilled engineers, specialists from various countries and a few trusted Hadeed engineers.
Project Design
We started collecting information on the market product mix requirements as stated by the Hadeed sales department. The product mix was essential to decide how we would technically obtain it from the given facilities and to determine how we would increase and enhance the equipment and facilities to meet new demands.
After thoroughly studying the existing plant capabilities, we decided to expand the existing plants instead of developing a greenfield project. We needed to erect the plant extension and produce the steel products. We noticed that the end product required an enhancement of the upper stream plants.
The upstream project included seaport facilities, a conveying system and a material handling system on Hadeed premises. Two new ship unloaders and a complete change of the 16-kilometer conveyor system with a faster speed and more handling capabilities was erected. The material handling system inside the Hadeed premises was also changed and enhanced.
The Hadeed mega-project included a new Hot Direct Reduced Iron Module to produce 1.76 million tonnes of Iron ore. The hot product was a new technology introduced to Hadeed, increasing the steel plant’s production to more than the designed capacities.
The 1.76 million-tons-per-year of reduced iron was to be sent to the steel plant . A new electrical arc furnace would melt the reduced iron from the DR plant. The new furnace would be erected as an extension of the three existing furnace melt shops. The furnace would be making 1.22 million tonnes of liquid steel.
Electrical arc furnaces require a lot of electrical power to melt iron, so we erected and enhanced the Hadeed electrical power substation with a 230-kilovolt line from Saudi Electricity Company. The substation had to also be improved with new 34.5-kilovolt and 13.8-kilovolt capacitance transformers, proper electrical breakers and extra gears.
In addition, the project included a new Rebar and Wire Rod Mill with a capacity of 500,000 tons per year. A Hot Strip Mill enhancement was then planned for 1 million tons per year with a Skin Pass Mill of 700,000 tons per year. The Cold Galvanizing Line was also enhanced to make an additional tonnage of 240,000 per year. Many other facilities were enhanced, such as scrap yards, utility and workshops.
The Biggest Challenge
The most challenging part was erecting and commissioning all mentioned plants during the company’s regular operation. No disturbance occurred, and implementation went very smoothly.
The conveying system had to be changed entirely, with all the gears and driving motors replaced with a new bag house system. We only had approximately 45 days, and we had to remove the old system, install the new one, and conduct cold and hot commissioning just before the operation.
Thanks to our meticulous planning and dedicated execution, this challenging task was completed successfully, setting a benchmark for future operations.
To manage a project of such scale, you need to be able to set up a comprehensive planning and control department. This is essential for controlling project construction behavior and monitoring contractor performance. It also covers the budget for each project and the cash flow required over time.
Our commitment to safety was unwavering, and the project was conducted with the utmost care to ensure the minimum number of accidents possible, instilling a sense of security and confidence in our stakeholders. Leadership style has a significant influence on achieving goals.
Leadership should help discover employee capabilities, giving them empowerment and respect. Depending on the situation, a democratic management style mixed with autonomous management is the ideal.
Breakbulk Middle East 2025 is happening on February 10-11 in Dubai.
