MOSCOW (MRC) -- Siam Cement Group (SCG) says its planned petrochemical complex in Vietnam would be further postponed by six months, pending the conclusion of an agreement with a new joint-venture partner following the exit of Qatar Petroleum International (QPI), as per GV.
The USD4.5-billion fully integrated complex is to be the first of its kind in Vietnam and a key regional flagship for the Thai conglomerate.
For Siam Cement, the massive size of the Vietnamese complex dictates that it would be better to wait until every major component is in place, said chief financial officer Chaovalit Ekkabut. SCG is now being in talks with a number of potential new partners who are keen to jointly invest, he added. "We think we are still in the timeline to complete everything in six months so that the project would go ahead and be completed as planned," said Chaovalit, noting that the focus was on the long-term potential of petrochemical demand in Vietnam rather than the normal cycles of the global petrochemical business.
To be developed on Long Son Island in southern Ba Ria Vung Tau province, the complex will consist of a factory capable of turning out 1.65 million tons of olefins, 1.45 million tons of polyolefins, 280,000 tons of chlor-alkali, and other materials each year. The site will also include support facilities, including a port, warehouses and a power plant.
SCG holds 46 % in the Long Son Petrochemicals Project, in which QPI previously had a 25% stake. The remaining 29% belongs to two Vietnamese partners - PetroVietnam and Vinachem.
The Qatari partner has maintained raw material supply contracts for the complex which was granted an investment license in 2008. Prior to the latest delay, it was projected to come onstream in 2018.
As MRC informed previously, in November 2015, Qatar Petroleum (QP), as part of a restructuring program, announced plans to withdraw from the joint venture Long Son petrochemical complex in Vietnam.
Besides, in 2014, top Thai energy firm PTT Pcl said it would make a proposal to the Vietnamese government to build a USD20 billion refinery and petrochemical complex, revised down from an earlier project discussed two years ago.
MRC