Saudi Aramco, a Saudi Arabian national oil and natural gas company, is building a 62,000 square-foot research center in Novi, one of three it is opening in the U.S. — and hiring mostly professionals with advanced degrees to work in them.
The other centers, the company said, will be in Houston and Cambridge, Mass.
By opening an office in metro Detroit, Saudi Aramco said that it aims to capitalize on collaboration with research groups on fuel efficiency and engine development.
“Out of 100 places they looked, they told us we were the first choice,” said Ara Topouzia, economic development director for Novi. “We’ve got a lot of companies that locate here. You’ve got access to land, access to freeways, an airport — and a lot of arteries that flow into Novi.”
The research center at 46535 Peary Ct. in the Beck North Corporate Park is expected to open in late summer and employ 20-50 people, Topouzia said. The amount of Saudi Aramco’s investment in the center is not known.
“The facility in the Motor City is testament of the intent to integrate science, research and technology together with the Big Three auto manufacturers,” said Pat Mancino, executive vice president of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations. “This whole project demonstrates the interdependence of the energy markets.”
Based in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco holds investment and joint-venture interests in refining and marketing in the U.S., South Korea, Japan and China — and annually produces about 3.3 billion barrels of oil. Worldwide, the company employs more than 56,000 workers.
In Houston, the company said it is building office and laboratory space, which will focus on research to find and extract oil and gas.
And in Cambridge, the company said, the center will be near the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The company’s other research centers are in Thuwal, Saudia Arabia, Delft, Netherlands, Paris and Beijing.
Frank Witsil, freep.com.
