Saudi Arabia’s SABIC to expand US shale gas investments through JVs

By DEEMA ALMASHABI
Bloomberg

Saudi Basic Industries Corp., the world’s second-biggest chemicals manufacturer, plans to expand investment in US shale gas projects through joint ventures, according to acting CEO Yousef al Benyan.

SABIC, as the company is known, signed an agreement with Houston-based Enterprise Products to get shale gas, al-Benyan said in an interview in Riyadh. The company may use the feedstock in the US or export it to other countries such as the UK, he said.

SABIC has converted crackers at UK plants to use shale gas as feedstock to produce olefins and their derivatives more competitively.

“The main areas in the US we are looking to invest in are the northeast and the south as they fit our overall expectations including government support, labor laws and unions,” al-Benyan said. “At this point we are not looking to acquire any US companies.”

SABIC, which in 2007 bought General Electric's (GE) plastics unit for $11.6 billion, said in April it plans to expand in China and the US because it’s difficult for the company to grow in Saudi Arabia due to a shortage of gas.

The Marcellus shale formation spread across Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio is America’s biggest natural gas producer, with output rising more than 14-fold since January 2007.

SABIC won’t be directly involved in Saudi Arabia’s shale production, he said. The discovery of shale gas in the country will “open up some opportunities for indirect investments for SABIC,” al-Benyan said.

BASF is the largest chemicals manufacturer, based on market capitalization.

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