Petro Rabigh set to acquire Rabigh II after securing loans

Rabigh Refining & Petrochemical Co. (Petro Rabigh) said it will acquire phase II of the Petro Rabigh project, worth SAR 31 billion, from the founding companies during the first half of this year after it secures necessary loans.  

The second phase involves the expansion of the ethane cracker unit to process an additional 30 million standard cubic feet of ethane per day. It will also have a new naphtha reformer and aromatics complex processing more than 2.7 tons of naphtha a year.

The project plants will produce 1.3 million tons of ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO), methyl methacrylate (MMA), polymathy methacrylate (PMMA), phenol, and nylon-6.

Production is expected to start in the first half of 2016. After completing the project, the company’s annual production capacity will increase to 15 million tons of petrochemicals from 5 million tons.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Aramco) and Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Co, which each own a 37.5 percent stake in Rabigh, notified the company in May that they would like to merge Rabigh II with Petro Rabigh, according to Argaam.