SAUDI Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) and Mitsubishi Rayon Company (MRC) are to set up a $1-billion petrochemical plant in the kingdom under a 50-50 joint venture.

The agreement was signed by Sabic vice president of  corporate finance and chief financial officer Mutlaq Al-Morished and MRC president Masanao Kambarar.
Under the agreement, the joint venture will utilise the ethylene-based alpha process commercialised by Lucite, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MRC, to manufacture methyl methacrylate monomer (MMA), with a capacity of 250,000 tonnes annually.
Also, the joint venture company will manufacture polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), with a capacity of 30,000 tonnes annually.
Sabic will be responsible for the supply of key raw materials such as ethylene and methanol for the venture.
MMA and acrylic resin are widely used to produce automobile parts, car exteriors, optical screens, and home appliances, among others, while PMMA is widely used in the construction and transport sectors, as well as for liquid crystal display (LCD), light-guided panels (LGP) for LCD screens, and for light emitted diode (LED) technology for flat screens, among other uses.
The plant is expected to start commercial production in 2013.