Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regional petrochemicals production capacity will rise to 145-146mn tons/year in 2016 from 116mn t/y in 2011, according to Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Secretary-General ‘Abd al-Wahab al-Sadun. Speaking to reporters at the seventh annual GPCA Forum in Dubai on 28 November, he said that a major increase in regional capacity last year was largely due to an extra 11mn t/y commissioned by producers in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Looking ahead, “the region still sees growth in new capacity, mainly in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.” Mr Sadun said that new petrochemicals capacity in the region would increasingly include performance chemicals. The growing availability of intermediate products such as butadiene and aromatics from new refining and petrochemicals plants is enabling companies to diversify into new areas such as synthetic rubbers, including butyl rubber and ethylene propylene diene monomer. (CONTINUED - 493 WORDS)
