Saudi Aramco’s share of petrochemical products in its Chinese joint venture will be marketed by a Sabic subsidiary in China following an agreement signed in Aramco’s Dhahran head office.
Sabic, through its subsidiary Sabic Shenzhen Trading Company Ltd, will be responsible for distributing 320,000 tonnes representing 25 per cent of Saudi Aramco’s share in the Chinese joint venture, Fujian Refining and Petrochemicals Company.  Sinopec and the Fujian government own 50 per cent of the shareholding while ExxonMobil owns the remaining 25 per cent through a subsidiary.
The project’s products will include such polyolefins as linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) at a production capability of 400,000 tonnes annually, high density polyethylene (HDPE) (400,000 tonnes) and polypropylene (PP) (470,000 tonne).
Fujian Refining and Petrochemicals Company Ltd is considered to be the first ever refining and petrochemical industries integrated project to be established with a foreign company in China
Implementation of the agreement is expected to start with the commercial startup of the project in the second quarter of 2009.
Saudi Aramco president and CEO Abdallah S Jum’ah said: “In itself, this agreement constitutes, from the kingdom’s perspective an extra-relative advantage for Sabic, which grants it the right to market polyolefins in support of Saudi investments abroad.” Jum’ah added: “We believe this cooperation between Saudi Aramco and Sabic will, in the future, add value to the kingdom’s internal and external investments.”
Sabic’s vice chairman and CEO Mohamed Al-Mady commented: “The agreement signed between Saudi Aramco and Sabic is a qualitative leap in the history of Saudi industrial development. The agreement incarnates the integration between two giants each occupying a pioneering position worldwide, the first in the field of oil industries and the other in the area of the petrochemical industry.”
He added, “I look forward to this agreement to serve as a launching pad for more extensive strategic cooperation between the two companies. Sabic has anchored its success over the years on its close cooperation with Saudi Aramco. We are looking forward to promoting this cooperation to include various industrial, marketing and technological aspects in a way that will accelerate national industrial development and maximise the gross domestic product.”
Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president, refining, marketing and international operations, Khalid G Buainain explained that the marketing studies, conducted by Sino Saudi Aramco Company Ltd, showed that the distribution and marketing of the polyolefins production of Fujian Refining and Petrochemicals Company would cover a large base of customers inside China. The two parties agreed that this task should be undertaken by Sabic through a polyolefins marketing agreement, on account of Sabic’s local and foreign experience in petrochemical marketing.
He added, “This agreement will underscore the depth of the cooperation between Saudi Aramco and Sabic to maximise the benefit of their investment projects in the best interest of the Saudi economy.”
The agreement was signed by Buainain and Sabic’s vice rresident, corporate finance,  Mutlaq Al-Morished.
Sabic is the world’s 5th largest petrochemicals company. The company is among the world’s market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilisers.
Saudi Aramco manages proven reserves of 260 billion barrels of crude oil plus the world’s fourth largest gas reserves of 239.5 trillion cu ft.