Basell holds a 25% stake in the 450,000tpa plant in Jubail

Basell holds a 25% stake in the 450,000tpa plant in Jubail

A new 450,000tpa PP plant started up at Jubail in Saudi Arabia this week, said Basell chief executive Volker Trautz. The Saudi Polyolefins Company plant, which also includes a dehydrogenation plant to supply the propylene feedstock, will now undergo commissioning. Basell holds a 25% stake in the plant.

Trautz said the investment reflected Basell’s adjustment of its strategy to the new environment. Studies demonstrated that a Middle East producer has a delivered cash cost advantage in Europe over local producers as soon as the oil price rises above $18 a barrel, he noted.

However, the PP manufacturer is not neglecting its European market with two world-scale HDPE plants at Wesseling in Germany and Plock in Poland. Each produces 320,000tpa and is integrated into refinery and cracker operations. At the same time, 300,000tpa of older, less efficient HDPE capacity is to be closed and three sites shut, Trautz told the Nexant Chem Systems European seminar.