SABIC plans China plant with Sinopec
May 18th, 2011 | Global TimesSaudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), the world’s largest chemicals producer by market value, said Tuesday that it is planning a $1 billion-plus facility in China with China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) to tap the country’s robust demand for plastics.
The project in Tianjin would have an annual capacity of 260,000 tons of polycarbonate and require total investment of more than $1 billion from SABIC’s existing 50/50 venture with Sinopec in Tianjin, said SABIC Chief Executive Mohamed Al-Mady.
Polycarbonate is an essential plastic used to produce a variety of consumer products and industrial components including automotive parts and compact discs.
“This is a major step for us to continue our leadership position in China in the plastics area,” Al-Mady told a news conference in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.
“The project will drive local economic development, satisfy growing demand for polycarbonate in Asia-Pacific and is of significant importance to the Chinese petrochemical industry and local industry in Tianjin,” he said.
SABIC’s Tianjin joint venture with Sinopec, which started operation in 2010, produces various petrochemical products, including ethylene, polyethylene, ethylene glycol and polypropylene.
The polycarbonate project, for which a memorandum of understanding had been signed by SABIC and Sinopec, was expected to be operational by 2015, SABIC said.