Qatar Petroleum (QP) has recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South Korea’s Honam Petrochemical Corporation (HPC) to participate in the QR9.4 billion ($2.6 billion) ethane cracker-cum-aromatics complexes at Mesaieed, Qatar.

The complex, set for commissioning in 2009, will be integrated into the existing Mesaieed refinery.
The complex will consist of a mixed feedstock cracker, expected to have a capacity of 1 million tonnes per year (tpy) of ethylene; 900,000 tpy capacity of propylene and polypropylene; 600,000 tpy capacity of styrene and polystyrene; 150,000 tpy capacity of aromatics; and 50,000 tpy capacity of by-products.
The cracker will receive naphtha from the nearby natural gas liquids (NGL) complex and ethane from the planned Ras Laffan-Mesaieed pipeline.
Under the MoU, HPC will hold 30 per cent stake in a new joint venture (JV) with the remaining 70 per cent being held by Qatar Holding Intermediate Industries Company (Waseeta), a recently established QP subsidiary.