KEY MILESTONES AND ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE ARABIAN GULF’S PETROCHEMICAL LANDSCAPE

The Petrochemical Industry Journey in the Arabian Gulf

1963

Petrochemical Industries Co. (PIC) is established in Kuwait

1975 Dr. Ghazi Al Gosaibi is appointed as Minister of Industry and Electricity in Saudi Arabia and given responsibility for creating a petrochemical industry

Royal Commision for Jubail and Yanbu (RCJY) established

Saudi Aramco begins work on a Master Gas System that will capture associated gases and make them available for industry and utilities

1976 A Royal Decree creates the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC)

Work commences on building the industrial city of Jubail in Saudi Arabia

1978

Work commences on building a second industrial city in Yanbu Saudi Arabia

SABIC and western partners form the first of many joint petrochemical ventures

1979The governments of Bahrain, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia form the Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (GPIC) in Bahrain

1964 Kuwait Chemical Fertilizer Company (KCFC) is formed as a joint venture of PIC, Gulf Oil, and British Petroleum

1965Petromin of Saudi Arabia establishes the Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co. (SAFCO)

1969The government of Qatar, along with Norsk Hydro and the Hambros Bank, form the Qatar Fertilizer Company (QAFCO)

1973QAFCO starts operation of its N-fertilizer plant in Qatar

1974The Government of Qatar joins with CdF Chemie and Gazocean of France to create QAPCO

1980

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) establishes a joint venture with Total to create a fertilizer operation (FERTIL) in Ruwais

QAPCO ethylene/polyethylene plant begins operation

1996NAMA, a private Saudi company, begins production of chlor-alkali in Jubail

1995

Boubyan Petrochemicals Co., Kuwait's first private chemical company, is established

2000Saudi Chevron aromatics plant is commissioned – the first wholly privately owned major aromatic complex in Jubail

2001The first phase of Borouge’s olefins complex is completed and production commences in Ruwais based on Borealis’ unique Borstar® bimodal technology

2004Yansab, an affliate of SABIC, is established in Yanbu

Sahara Petrochemicals, a private Saudi joint stock company, is formed

Dow Chemical and PIC form MEGlobal, producing and marketing ethylene glycol, with plants in Canada

Oman Methanol Company (OMC), a private sector venture, is formed

1998Borealis and ADNOC join in creating a major petrochemical operation in Abu Dhabi, which would come to be known as Borouge

TASNEE (National Industrialization Corporation), a private Saudi joint-stock company announces its intent to build the first Propylene/PP complex based on Propane Dehydro Technology (PDH) in Jubail

1999The Saudi International Petrochemical Co. (Sipchem), a private joint-stock company, is formed

Qatar Fuel Additives Company (QAFAC) is formed

1991SAFRA, a private joint venture of Total and several Saudi private firms, comes on line producing formaldehyde

QAFCO embarks on a major expansion

1993SVCG and Chevron Chemical Co. sign a letter of intent to build a major aromatics facility in Jubail

PIC and Union Carbide of the United States sign a memorandum of understanding to form a major petrochemical operation named EQUATE, which would use Union Carbide’s Unipol technology

1982Dow Chemical withdraws from its SABIC joint venture, PETROKEMYA, which goes on to great success, demonstrating SABIC's capacity to succeed on its own

1983FERTIL begins operation of its urea/ammonia complex

SABIC’s first petrochemical joint ventures – AR RAZI and SAMAD – come on line

SABIC makes a move downstream when it forms IBN HAYYAN with Lucky Goldstar of Korea to produce VCM and PVC

Sabic affliate ALBAYRONI comes on line

1985GPIC commences production

More SABIC ventures come on stream- KEMYA (JV with Exxon)- YANPET (JV with Mobil) - PETROKEMYA - SADAF (JV with Shell) - SHARQ (JV with Mitsubishi & Japanese Consortium)

Kuwait Chemical Fertilizer Company operation in the 1970s. Courtesy EQUATE.

Dr. Ghazi Al Gosaibi

Major petrochemical sites and the Master Gas System.

Sheikh Tahnon Bin Mohammed Al-Nahyan, ADNOC board chairman, signs the joint-venture agreement for FERTIL with Jor Joueon of Total, 18 May 1980.

King Salman bin Abdulazi, then governor of Riyadh, cuts the ribbon, officially opening SABIC’s first R&D Center (on right) in 1994.

Saudi Phillips petrochemical operation in Jubail. Courtesy Chevron Phillips Chemicals Company LLC.

First shipments of polyethylene leaving Borouge’s Abu Dhabi plant to customers in the Middle East and Asia.

The young SABIC executive team in the early 1990s. From left to right: Moayyed Al-Qurtas, Saad Bin Salamah, Mohamed Al-Mady, Ibrahim Bin Salamah, Ghazi Al-Hajjar, Abdulrahman Al-Ankari, Abdullah Al-Nojaidi, and Nasser Al-Sayari. Courtesy SABIC.

SABIC employees gain on-the-job training. Courtesy SABIC.

Abdulaziz Al-Zamil, SABIC's first CEO, shows a sample of polyethylene resin produced by SABICCourtesy SABIC.

GPIC’s production facility by the sea. Courtesy GPIC

The royal decree creating SABIC. Courtesy SABIC.

SABIC’s first home in Riyadh.Courtesy SABIC.

QAPCO’s first plant under construction in 1978. Courtesy QAPCO.

2006Establishment of the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA)

SABIC purchases Huntsman Corporation’s petrochemical operations in the United Kingdom

Aromatic Oman, an affiliate of Oman Oil, begins to build its plant at Sohar

Oman Oil Co. forms Salalah Methanol Co. and begins its plant in Sohar

The foundation stone for SABIC’s affiliate Saudi Kayan petrochemical complex, one of the largest in the world, was laid in Jubail

2007Borouge begins construction of Borouge 2

SABIC purchases General Electric’s plastics business

SABIC Innovative Plastics (IP) is established

SABIC signs a JV agreement with Sinopec to build a petrochemical complex in Tianjin

2008Abu Dhabi National Chemicals Company (ChemWEyaat) is formed as a joint venture of ADNOC, the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, and the International Petroleum Company

2009Sohar International Urea and Chemical Industries (SIUCI) in Oman, a wholly privately owned company, begins production

Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) acquires Nova Chemicals of Canada

Saudi Aramco's JV with Sinopec and ExxonMobil in Fuijan (China) comes on line, producing a range of refined petrochemical products

2010Kuwait Aromatics Company (KARO), the first aromatics company in Kuwait, is commissioned

2011Saudi Aramco and Dow Chemical approve the formation of a joint venture (Sadara Chemical Company) to build and operate a world-scale, fully integrated chemicals complex in Jubail. Comprising 26 manufacturing units, it will constitute one of the largest integrated chemical facilities in the world and the largest ever built in one phase. The complex will include a downstream industrial park

2011

SABIC and ExxonMobil announce plans to create a major elastomers operation in Jubail

IPIC of Abu Dhabi acquires CEPSA of Spain

Oman government forms the Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company (Orpic), bringing Aromatics Oman, Oman Oil Refineries and Petrochemicals Company, and OPP under one roof

NATPET production facility. Courtesy NATPET.

Then Saudi Aramco President and CEO Abdullah Jum’ah and Hiromasa Yonekura, President of Sumitomo Chemical sign the joint venture agreement establishing PetroRabigh.

Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thunayan Al-Saud, Chairman of SABIC (2nd from left); flanked by Steve Pryor (left) and Al-Mady (3rd

from left), receives a memento from project partners ExxonMobil and SABIC at an event held to celebrate and announce the finalization of the project. Photo SABIC

The sale of GE Plastics to SABIC in 2007. From left to right: Abdullah Bazid, Mohamed Al - Mady and Jeff Immelt

Riyadh governor, Prince Khaled bin Bandar, in 2013 opens SABIC’s Plastics Application Center

1994Oman India Fertilizer Co. (OMIFCO) is formed

Opening of SABIC's first R&D Center in Riyadh

1960s -1980s 1980s - 2000s 2000s - to date

www.gpca.org.ae

1997Qatar Vinyl Co. (QVC) is created as a joint venture of QAPCO and Elf Atochem

Qatar Petroleum joins with Chevron Chemical Co. to establish the Qatar Chemical Co. (Q-Chem)

2005Construction begins of NATPET, a private Saudi petrochemical operation

Saudi Aramco and Sumitomo Chemical of Japan form a joint venture – Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Company (PetroRabigh)

Saudi Aramco and Total sign a memorandum of understanding for the development of a refinery at Jubail that would include an aromatics complex. The joint venture will become known as Saudi Aramco’s Total Refining and Petrochemical Company (Satorp)

2012The Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distributing Company (Muntajat) is formed to handle all marketing of Qatar’s chemical, polymer, and fertilizer products

2013The Saudi Aramco/Total joint venture SATORP comes on stream in Jubail

ORPIC’s Liwa Plastic integrated complex is announced, the first ethylene cracker to be built in Oman

SABIC inaugurates the SABIC Plastics Application Development Center in Riyadh Techno Valley

2014SABIC becomes the largest patent developer in the Middle East by surpassing the 10,000 patent mark

2015Saudi Aramco acquires 50% stake in the synthetic rubber business of LANXESS

GPCA celebrates the 10th edition of its Annual Forum and launches its new brand identity

2002State Mines (DSM) petrochemical operations in the Netherlands.

Advanced Petrochemicals is founded as a Saudi private joint-stock company

Gulf Farabi, a private Saudi petrochemical company, is formed

Oman Propylene Company (OPP) is formed

1989

The Saudi Formaldehyde Company (today known as Chemanol) is the first private Saudi petrochemical company formed

1988

Opening of SABIC's Technical Services Lab (TSL) that would develop into SABIC's first R&D center

Khalid Al-Falih (front left) and Andrew Liveris of Dow Chemical (front right) sign the agreement forming Sadara. Back row, from left to right: Prince Faisal bin Turki Al-Saud, Ali Bin Ibrahim Al-Naimi, Ibrahim Al-Assaf, and Prince Saud Al-Thunayan. Courtesy Saudi Aramco.

The journey continues...