Commercial production has started at Saudi Polymers Company (SPCo), joint venture partner Chevron Phillips announced on 1 October. Construction work began in January 2008, with first production achieved in mid-2012. MEES understands that start-up was delayed by design issues discovered during commissioning that required additional safety measures to be implemented (MEES, 2 July). SPCo is owned 65% by Petrochem, which is traded on Riyadh’s Tadawul stock exchange, and the Arabian Chevron Phillips Petrochemical Company, a subsidiary of Chevron Phillips Chemical.

“We are proud to report we’ve safely achieved start-up and commercial production for our new facilities,” SPCo Executive President Mike Zeglin said. “We will now be working to fill the critical inventory targets needed to ensure our long term reliability as a supplier of quality products.” (CONTINUED - 243 WORDS)