Total Petrochemicals in talks with Qatar for a US$6 bln petrochemical plant

27-Nov-10

Signs are mounting that ExxonMobil Corp. has pulled out of a petrochemical project in Qatar. Total Petrochemicals is in talks with Qatar about developing a US$6 bln petrochemical plant in the gas-rich Arab Gulf state. Talks between Total's petrochemical arm and state-run Qatar Petroleum are in their preliminary stage with plans being drawn up for a mixed-feedstock cracker to be located in the northern industrial city of Ras Laffan in Qatar, holder of the world's third-largest natural gas reserves. Several domestic and international players are investing in petrochemical projects in Qatar, Saudi Arabia or Kuwait to benefit from cheap and widely available natural gas, and to meet demand for their products from buoyant international markets, particularly in Asia.