Saudi Aramco, Russia's Sibur said to hold talks on rubber plant

Russian petrochemical group Sibur is holding talks with Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi Aramco), the world’s largest oil producer, to set up a venture to produce synthetic rubber, Reuters reported, citing company head of management board Dmitry Konov.

“The Saudi-Russian dialogue has probably accelerated the project, even though we started discussion some four years ago,” Konov said.

The two companies signed a cooperation memorandum in 2017 when Saudi King Salman visited Russia.

"Good feedstock availability in Saudi Arabia and growing Asian markets could make the project attractive," Konov added.

The joint venture will be part of Aramco’s strategy of boosting petrochemicals investments to reduce crude oil dependence.