JUPC Petrochemical Complex, Saudi Arabia

During the last quarter of 2000 Sabic announced that it had established a new subsidiary, Jubail United Petrochemical Company (JUPC), which would build a petrochemical complex.

The JUPC complex is centered around a cracker producing 1 million tonne/year of ethylene. The complex is being built in Jubail Industrial City, Saudi Arabia. Downstream products are 575,000t/yr of ethylene glycol (EG), 400,000t/yr high density polyethylene (hdPE) and 150,000t/yr linear alpha olefins (LAO). The complex requires an investment of $2 billion and is due to come on stream in the second half of 2004.

JUPC PROJECT SPONSOR

JUPC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sabic. Sabic is a Saudi Arabia based non-oil industrial company. JUPC is Sabic's 17th world-scale manufacturing affiliate.

FINANCING

During March 2001 Gulf International Bank (GIB) Investment Banking Division said that it had been appointed as independent financial advisor to JUPC in relation to raising debt finance for the $2 billion petrochemical complex.

In January 2002 Sabic announced that underwriting letters had been signed by a group of banks in relation to a $1,154 million loan facility. One year later, in January 2003, the loan facility was formally signed. Riyadh Bank acted as agent for the loan. An additional $400 million is being provided by the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SERVICES

Fluor Daniel Arabia, part of the engineering and construction unit of Fluor Corporation, was appointed program management services contractor for the petrochemical complex. The letter of intent for the program management services and outside battery limit work was signed in Al-Jubail Industrial City in 2002.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE ETYLENE PLANT

In November 2001 a consortium, comprising US-based Halliburton KBR and Japan-based companies Chiyoda Corporation and Mitsubishi Corporation, was awarded an engineering, procurement and construction contract (EPC) for the ethylene plant. It is claimed that the 1 million t/yr cracker will be one of the largest grass roots crackers built in Saudi Arabia.

ETHYLENE TECHNOLOGY

The cracker will be based on Halliburton KBR's Selective Cracking Optimum Recovery (SCORE) technology. The technology is a combination of KBR and Exxon Mobil ethylene technologies. Halliburton KBR claims that the technology will provide JUPC with the highest selectivity to ethylene coupled to a low pressure recovery scheme which reduces the capital investment of the ethylene plant.

CONSTRUCTION OF ETHYLENE GLYCOL PLANT

During the first half of 2002 JUPC awarded Toyo Engineering Company (TEC) an engineering services, construction and procurement contract for the ethylene glycol production plant. The unit will be based on technology supplied by Scientific Design. The contract was awarded on lumpsum turnkey basis. This plant is scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2004.

TECHNOLOGY FOR THE LINEAR ALPHA OLEFINS PLANT

JUPC's 150,000t/yr linear alpha olefins (LAO) plant will be based on technology developed jointly by Sabic and German engineering company Linde. Known as Sablin, the technology was unveiled in the final quarter of 2001.

The process uses ethylene as a feedstock for a one stage homogenous reaction for the production of C4s-C20s and LAO. The technology is said to reduce investment and production costs and the process parameters can be adjusted to maximize the production of light or heavy LAOs.

PROCESS CONTROL INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Kentz USA/Yokogawa Corporation was awarded a contract to provide process control information management systems (PCIMS) services for the petrochemical complex. The PCIMS services include design, build and testing of distributed control systems as well as development and maintenance of PCIMS standardisation.

Work on the project began in January 2002 and is due to be completed in December 2003.

VIRTUAL PLANT SIMULATOR

Aspen Technology (AspenTech) was appointed to implement and provide operator training simulators for the petrochemical complex. The simulators will help ensure the safe and efficient operation of the plants during commissioning and start-up. The simulators will also support performance improvement strategies during later operations. The scope of AspenTech's contract includes the delivery of Virtual Plant Simulators for the ethylene and ethylene glycol plant.

SAFETY AND CRITICAL CONTROLS

Triconex, an operating unit of Invensys, will supply JUPC's petrochemical complex with critical safety and turbo machinery control systems. Triconex stated that the contract is valued at around $6 million and requires the company to provide hardware, software, programming, integration and validation services for all emergency shutdown systems on the complex. Triconex controls are said to be a well known as industry standards in critical shutdown and turbo machinery control applications. According to JUPC a false trip in a critical-control system can cost up to $1 million per day in lost production.

ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT

Euroweld, based in the Czech Republic is supplying pressure vessels and heat exchangers on the project while ATYB Metal Fabrication, part of AYTB Group, is making and supplying ethylene plant process piping.

Two large desiccant air dryer packages, for use as the complex's main instrument air dryers, were supplied by Pneumatic Products.