MANAMA, May 7: Saudi Aramco Products Trading Co expects its refined oil products trading volumes to rise to 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) as its downstream business expands, the firm’s chief executive said on Monday.

Aramco Trading, a subsidiary of state-run Saudi Aramco which plans a major increase in its refining capacity, started commercial operations in January.

“Our mandate is for different types of trading with the exception of crude,” said Said al-Hadrami at the Middle East Petroleum and Gas Conference (MPGC) in Bahrain, his first public speech since the company was launched.

Hadrami did not disclose how long it would take to reach the 1.5 million bpd target from a current traded volume of 500,000-600,00 bpd of refined products, condensate and sulphur.

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) will soon be added to the company’s trading portfolio.

“Establishing a trading business was natural as the downstream system got more complex. We were only on one side of the market,” he told reporters.

The company, based at the state company’s Dhahran hea-dquarters, replaces a marketing department.—Reuters