Dubai, UAE – 30 November, 2014 – The 9th Annual Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) conference and exhibition concluded recently in Dubai, UAE, bringing a record number of regional and global leaders together to meet and discuss future trends, opportunities and challenges of the industry. The pre-event session was opened by Ziad Al- Labban, CEO of Sadara Chemical Company (Sadara), now building the largest chemical complex ever built in the world in a single phase in Jubail Industrial City II, Saudi Arabia. During his welcome remarks, Ziad said construction of the Sadara chemical complex has reached 75% and is proceeding on plan and on schedule with best-in-class performance in safety. He also mentioned that the complex had reached peak construction with more than 54,000 dedicated construction personnel on-site at the beginning of the fourth quarter, 2014. “A key differentiator for Sadara is our commitment to further developing Saudi Arabia’s downstream industry and the concept of “Made in Saudi Arabia” through the visionary idea of PlasChem Park, a collaboration between Sadara and the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu,” said Ziad.
“With 14 of the 26 manufacturing units being constructed at the Sadara complex completely new to the Kingdom, we will enable a host of opportunities for local Saudi and international players to invest in facilities to capitalize on and make use of our differentiated products, thereby jumpstarting this key downstream manufacturing concept,” concluded Ziad.
The opening day’s plenary session included a speech by Eng. Mohamed Al-Mady, Chairman of GPCA and Vice Chairman and CEO of Sabic; as well as keynote addresses by Khalid Al-Falih, President and CEO of Aramco, and Andrew Liveris, Chairman and CEO of The Dow Chemical Company.
The conference topics revolved primarily around factors impacting the entire industry, including the importance of educating and training the region’s human resources, global oil and gas prices and the impact these prices have on the chemicals industry, as well as the need to differentiate product offerings in order to stay competitive in the ever growing global market.
The 2014 GPCA Annual Forum received more than 2,000 delegates from around the world this year, providing an essential regional platform for industry players to meet, discuss and share knowledge, experience and expertise.
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About Sadara:
Sadara is a joint venture developed by the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) and The Dow Chemical Company. With a total investment of about $20 billion, Sadara is building a world scale chemical complex in Jubail Industrial City II in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. Comprised of 26 world scale manufacturing units, the Sadara complex is the world’s largest to be built in a single phase and will be the first in the Middle East to use refinery liquids, such as naphtha, as feedstock. By using best-in-class technologies to crack refinery liquid feedstock, Sadara will enable many industries that either currently do not exist in Saudi Arabia or only exist through imports of raw materials. The adjacent PlasChem Park, a unique collaboration between Sadara and the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, will create more value downstream, generating unprecedented investment, innovation, economic growth and thousands of jobs. Sadara is on track to deliver its first products in the second half of 2015, with the complex in full operation in 2016.
For further information, please contact:
Sami Amin
Public Affairs
Sadara Chemical Company
Mobile: +966501922155
Email: Sami.Amin@Sadara.com
website: www.sadara.com