A Jubail-based producer of regenerated and recycled catalysts from oil refineries and petrochemical industries is considering an expansion in capacity, a senior official has said.

"Expansion through installation of another regeneration unit is on the cards," said general manager Dr Saleh A Abotteen of Al Bilad Catalyst Company, which is a joint venture between Saudi, Kuwaiti and French investors.

The proposed expansion follows a new service in density segregation of catalysts introduced by Al Bilad under a joint venture with a local catalyst handling company, Anabeeb.

Al Bilad's technical collaborator is Eurecat SA of France, which also holds 30 per cent of the stake. Saudi investors have a shareholding of 50 per cent with Kuwaitis accounting for the remainder of 20 per cent.

The company started commercial production in 1995 for off-site treatment (regeneration, burnoff and recycling) of catalysts used in oil refineries and petrochemical industries. The main export markets are the GCC states, the US and Europe.

"The company is progressing well and is achieving its targeted growth year by year," said Abotteen.

Some 1,800 tonnes of catalysts worth SR9 million ($2.4 million) are sold annually with 30 per cent serving the Saudi market, another 60 per cent sent to other GCC markets and 10 per cent exported elsewhere.

The 3.7-hectare plant in Jubail Industrial City has three major units for regeneration, stripping and screening with a state-of-the-art equipment control system. The licensed capacity is 4,500 tonnes per year (tpy) for regeneration and recycling but the installed capacity is 2,250tpy with current capacity utilisation around 1,800tpy.

The used catalysts Al Bilad uses are mainly manufactured from aluminium and other material such as cobalt, nickel, molybdenum, tungsten, platinum and palladium.

"Prospects in the near term are very bright, particularly with environmental regulations getting stricter day by day and refining industries planning to reduce the sulphur level by using more catalysts," said Abotteen.