Amid growing expectations about the future business of oil refineries in South Korea, the new chief of the local refining company S-Oil is expected to play a leading role in implementing its growth strategy aimed at enhancing profitability.

S-Oil CEO Hussain Al-Qahtani, whose term started June 13, has begun overseeing major company work, to be marked by the inauguration ceremony of the S-Oil Onsan Refinery in Ulsan on Wednesday.

The state-of-the-art facility houses a residue upgrading complex and an olefin downstream complex, to produce high value petrochemical products. The company has invested 5 trillion won -- a record-high investment for the construction of a single plant here -- in the Onsan Refinery.

Under Al-Qahtani, the company will be pushing forward with its phase two petrochemical project, such as by considering the construction of a 1,500 KTA steam cracker and olefin downstream facilities.

As S-Oil begins a new chapter with the Onsan Refinery, the CEO’s experience in the industry is expected to help the company achieve its business goals. He has accumulated expertise and leadership skills working about 30 years in the refining and petrochemical industry, according to the company.

“He is best suited to drive the high performance and strategic growth of S-Oil at a time when the company is penetrating deeper into the petrochemical business and preparing for the new age of energy conversion” said an S-Oil official.

Before joining S-Oil, the CEO served as president and CEO of Saudi Aramco Shell Refinery from 2016. In his previous position, he played a leading role in driving strategic growth of the company amid growing competition in the energy industry. He also demonstrated competency in a variety of business activities, the company said.

Al-Qahtani majored in chemical engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. The Saudi Arabian CEO also attended the executive program at IMD Business School. He spent 29 years at Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, taking up key roles in production, engineering and projects.

Al-Qahtani also worked as the manager of Yanbu Refinery on the Red Sea and held other executive positions, such as head of process engineering and control systems and director of domestic joint ventures management. He was recognized by the company for his capabilities in technology transfers, R&D and facility planning to optimize assets and operations.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)