Saudi industry diversifying feedback mix, expanding product slates

30-May-14

The Saudi industry is diversifying its feedback mix and expanding its product slates to include more higher-value intermediates. An example of the strategy to diversify petrochemicals exports is Sadara, which will incorporate liquid feedstocks as well as gas to feed its cracker at Al Jubail and include more than 20 downstream process units. Meanwhile, Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) and ExxonMobil Chemical are investing USD3.4bn to build a rubber and elastomers complex that will introduce ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber, polybutadiene rubber, and carbon black production to Saudi Arabia, as per Business Monitor International. The diversification of the feedstock mix is essential as Saudi Arabia bans imports of natural gas and its pricing structure for domestic supplies has reduced the financial incentive to explore for it. Foreign companies formed ventures with state oil firm Saudi Aramco to look for gas deposits, but over the past decade they largely failed to find commercially viable deposits. Saudi authorities now want to focus the search on unconventional deposits that would require more complex and expensive technologies. However, this rise in gas extraction costs will increase the cost of production and undermine the industry's competitiveness against the new threat of shale-based US production. The business environment faced by Saudi producers in 2014 is similar to 2013, with China's economy growing steadily and Europe stagnant or growing at a rate of about 1%. China will remain the biggest market for petrochemicals exports, which will continue to grow solidly around 6-8% per annum over the short-to-medium. Saudi producers are looking beyond reliance on the Chinese market to other emerging markets, in particular South America and in the long-term Africa.