Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) and Borealis are investing $6.2 billion in Borouge 4, a unit that will be able to produce more than 3 billion pounds of polyethylene resin per year in Ruwais, United Arab Emirates.
The agreement was signed Nov. 15. In a news release, officials said the expansion "confirms both partners' commitment to the growth of Borouge and to support chemical production, and advanced manufacturing and industry in Ruwais."
The signing was witnessed by ADNOC Chairman Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Member of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. Officials added that the expansion "will meet growing customer demand across the Middle East, Africa and Asia…in energy, infrastructure, and advanced packaging."
The project includes a 3.3 billion-pound capacity ethane cracker, two state-of-the-art Borstar-brand PE plants and a cross-linked PE plant. It's scheduled to be operational by the end of 2025.
Borouge materials are used in a range of products including industrial-grade pipes, cables, films and personal protective equipment. The first Borouge facility, making almost 1 billion pounds of PE, was commissioned in 2001.
Borouge 2 and Borouge 3 took capacity to almost 10 billion pounds of PE and polypropylene by 2014. Borouge 4 will boost the site's annual PE/PP production to just over 14 billion pounds, making it the world's largest single-site polyolefin facility, officials said.
Borouge is a joint venture between ADNOC and Borealis. Vienna-based Borealis employs 6,900 and posted sales of $7.7 billion in 2020. State-owned ADNOC ranks as one of the world's 10 largest oil and gas firms.