Saudi Arabias Sipchem Chemical Co, a fully-owned unit of Saudi International Petrochemical Co, has signed a US$43.9 million loan facility agreement with the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) to help finance the construction of an ethyl acetate and butyl plant in Jubail
The plant will have a production capacity of 100,000 tonnes per year and is located in Jubail Industrial City, Saudi Arabia.
The chemical project is part of Sipchem’s phase III expansion programme and is considered to be the first of its kind in the region, according to Sipchem president of operations Abdullah Al-Saadoon.
The total cost of the project is around $93.3 million, and is expected to start during the second quarter of 2013. It will supply both the local and international markets with ethyl acetate and butyl acetate.
The feedstock for the production of ethyl acetate is acetic acid, which will be obtained from the International Acetyl Company, an affiliate of Sipchem, and ethanol will be imported from aboard.
