Inc. announced Qatar Energy Today, Sunday, the final investment decision for a petrochemical complex in Ras Laffan worth six billion dollars, in collaboration with Chevron Phillips Chemical Company.
The complex, which is expected to be the largest of its kind in the Middle East, includes an ethane cracker with a capacity of 2.1 million tons of ethylene annually.
Production overall is expected to start in 2026.
Qatar Energy Company chief Saad Al-Kaabi said the integrated petrochemical complex will also include two units for high-density polyethylene derivatives, with a total production capacity of 1.7 million tonnes annually.
The project, first announced in 2019, highlights efforts by oil-producing countries in the Middle East to expand into petrochemicals used in the production of plastics and packaging materials with the aim of opening new markets and finding new sources of income other than the export of crude oil and natural gas.
Under the agreement signed today, Sunday, the state-owned Qatar Energy Company will own 70% of the project, while Chevron Phillips Chemical Company will own 30%.
“This (project) represents the largest investment ever by Qatar Energy in the petrochemical sector in Qatar,” said Al-Kaabi.
He added that the complex, which is located in the industrial city of Ras Laffan, represents an “important milestone” in Qatar’s expansion strategy in the petrochemical field.
The ethylene production capacity of Qatar, one of the world’s largest LNG producers, will be doubled thanks to the new complex.
Qatar’s domestic polymer production will also increase from 2.6 million tonnes to four million tonnes annually.
Qatar, one of the most influential countries in the world’s liquefied natural gas markets, is working to expand the North Gas Field, which will increase its liquefaction capacity from 77 million tons per year to 126 million by 2027.
For its part, Italian firm Mer Technimont said on Sunday that it had commenced an engineering, procurement and construction contract worth $1.3 billion, awarded by a joint venture between Qatar Energy and Chevron Phillips Chemicals.
The contract, announced in December, is for the construction of a polyethylene plant as part of a polymer complex in the industrial city of Ras Laffan, Qatar.
The Italian company added in a statement that it expects the project to be completed by 2026.
