The growing trend among the Gulf’s downstream players toward integrating petchems with refineries to maximize revenues is seeing the region’s NOCs increasingly operating across the upstream and downstream – like global petroleum majors.

And they are increasingly tapping the expertise of the oil majors, in the downstream as well as the upstream. Three of the global majors currently have Gulf petchems interests: Total and Chevron are each in four joint JVs, while ExxonMobil is a partner in two – and all of these assets are in Qatar and Saudi Arabia (see table). (CONTINUED - 906 WORDS)