SAUDI ARABIA Sabic's Profits Rise
Sabic has reported second quarter net profit up 17% to SR7.54 billion ($2 billion), its "highest-ever" in one quarter. Sales for the quarter were not disclosed. Sabic's... Air Liquide Acquires Helium Business
Air Liquide says it has acquired Pure Helium (Mumbai), an international supplier of liquid and gaseous helium, helium based mixtures, and argon. Pure Helium also has a presence in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates... Ma'aden's IPO Is 68% Subscribed
Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Ma'aden; Riyadh) says that 68% of its previously announced initial public offering (IPO) has been subscribed with five days of the offer period left. About 2.7 million investors... Aramco and Total Form Jubail Refining and Petrochemical JV
Saudi Aramco and Total say they have agreed to establish a joint venture, Jubail Refining and Petrochemical Co., following a recent signing in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia of a shareholders agreement and other core agreements. The deals will lead to construction of a... Ma’aden Secures Financing for Saudi Phosphate Complex
Ma’aden Phosphate Co. (Riyadh), a 70-30 joint venture between Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Ma’aden) and Sabic, says it has signed several loan agreements that will be used to finance a previously announced phosphate fertilizer complex in Saudi... More Stories » KUWAIT Dow-Kuwait JV Appoints CEO, Selects Michigan for HQ
Dow Chemical and Kuwait Petroleum’s Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC; Kuwait City) have named James R. Fitterling as CEO of their proposed petchem joint venture. The 50-50 jv will be...
Equate Reports Mechanical Completion of EG Unit
Equate Petrochemical Co., says it it has achieved mechanical completion of its 600,000 m.t./year ethylene glycol (EG) plant, built as part of the Olefins II Kuwait Program and handed over to Equate. Commissioning activities...
Equate Signs Off-gas Supply Deal
Equate Petrochemical (Kuwait) says this week it has signed a deal to provide CO2 off-gas from its manufacturing facilities to business conglomerate Alnafisi International (Kuwait). The project should be in commercial operation by the first quarter of 2010... W.R. Grace Opens Regional Head Office in Dubai
W.R. Grace has opened a regional head office in Dubai. The office houses employees from multiple Grace product lines and provides a central resource for customers in the region. "The Middle East offers... GPCA Highlights Growing Mideast Influence
The Second Annual Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Forum attracted more than 750 delegates, a big increase on the 450 delegates who attended the first meeting. “I am proud of the progress GPCA has made in its short history,”... More Stories » U.A.E. Air Liquide Acquires Helium Business
Air Liquide says it has acquired Pure Helium (Mumbai), an international supplier of liquid and gaseous helium, helium based mixtures, and argon. Pure Helium also has a presence in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates... Coatings Unit Planned in UAE
Paintmaker Becker Industrie (Montbrison, France) says it will open a €1-million ($1.6 million)... Cabot Builds Masterbatch Plant in Dubai
Cabot Corp. says it plans to build a carbon black masterbatch manufacturing plant in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai. The plant will have an initial capacity of 25,000 m.t./year with provisions for expansion to 75,000 m.t./year. Construction is due to start... Cabot Plans Masterbatch Plant in Dubai
Cabot says it will build a new carbon black masterbatch plant in Dubai, due onstream in the fall of 2009. The... BASF, Bahrain Firm Eye PU Systems JV
BASF says its Elastogran polyurethanes (PU) subsidiary and the Kanoo Group (Manama, Bahrain) have agreed to form a PU systems joint venture in Dubai. The jv, to be owned 51% by Kanoo and 49% by BASF with operational... More Stories » IRAN Iran: A Major Player in Waiting
Iran is preparing to become a major player in international petrochemical markets, said speakers at the 8th Iran Petrochemical Forum (IPF), held recently in Tehran. National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran), the country’s biggest producer, has announced... Iran's NPC to be Privatized Subsidiary by Subsidiary
National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran) will not be privatized as one whole as was previously anticipated, according to a report in the Iranian Economic Digest (IED). Quoting the head of National Iranian Oil Company's (Tehran) privatization head, Ali... Linde Lands to Work on Iran’s Olefins 12 Complex
National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran) has appointed Linde to carry out preliminary engineering work on the planned Persian Gulf Petrochemical olefins complex at Assaluyeh, Iran, CW has learned. Linde will prepare cost estimates for the complex, also known... Iran Splits Ethylene Pipeline; Adds Downstream Unit
National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran) says it has split into two a major project to build an ethylene pipeline in the west of Iran, and that it will build an additional downstream facility linked to the pipeline, increasing the number of downstream sites... Iran Aims to Overtake Saudi Arabia in Petchems; NPC Sale Advances
Iranian officials say the country is on course to overtake Saudi Arabia and become the biggest petrochemicals manufacturer in the Mideast following a massive investment program in Iran spanning the next 10 years. Iran will overtake Saudi Arabia in ethylene... More Stories » QATAR Bids for Honam Olefins Unit in Qatar Are Due in October
Commercial bids for a previously announced olefins plant at Mesaieed, Qatar, planned by a 70-30 joint venture between Qatar Intermediate Holdings Co. (Doha), a subsidiary of Qatar Petroleum; and Honam... Reliance and Gail India Seek to Establish Petchem Plant in Qatar
Reliance Industries and Gail India (New Delhi) are proposing to establish a $1.3-billion petrochemical complex in Qatar, reports say. A joint delegation from... Reliance and Gail India Seek to Establish Petchem Plant in Qatar
Reliance Industries and Gail India (New Delhi) plan to make a proposal to the government of Qatar to establish a $1.3-billion petrochemical plant in the country, reports... Süd-Chemie Brings Catalyst Plant Online in Qatar
Süd-Chemie says it has started up its new catalysts facility at Mesaieed, Qatar. The company invested in the “low double-digit million euros” in the new facility. The catalysts will be used to convert natural gas into diesel in gas-to-liquids... Bidders Line up for Qatar Cracker
Three groups of contractors have so far submitted bids to build and supply technology for a previously announced ethane and naphtha cracker at Mesaieed, Qatar, reports say. The cracker and an associated derivatives complex will be owned and operated by a... More Stories » OMAN Octal Plans Further PET Expansion
Octal (Muscat) says it will boost capacity of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resins by an additional 500,000 m.t./year at Salalah, Oman by May 2010. The company says the resins will supply bottled beverage markets in Europe, the... Oman Company Details PET and APET Sheet Plans
Octal (Muscat) says its previously announced polyethylene terephthalate (PET) complex at Salalah, Oman will come onstream in August at a cost of $300 million. The plant will have... Oman Backs Duqm Refinery-Petchem Scheme
Oman’s Supreme Committee for Town Planning (Muscat) has issued a tender for a masterplan that would integrate a previously announced refining and petrochemical complex in the free zone and... GPCA 2007: Mideast will Be 'a New Economic Powerhouse'
The world is witnessing a new chapter in the chemical industry's dynamics and evolution with the emergence of the Mideast as an economic powerhouse, says Andrew Liveris, chairman and CEO of Dow Chemical. In a speech this morning to the second annual Gulf... Octal Pursuing Lead in Consumer Packaging
Octal (Muscat, Oman) is investing $300 million dollars to expand its amorphous polyethylene terephthalate (APET) sheet-making capacity from 30,000 m.t./year to 300,000 m.t./year. The expansion is expected to come online in May of next year at the... More Stories »
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