Leading plastics solutions provider Borouge has signed a number of multi-billion-dollar contracts for a major expansion of its production facilities in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi, which will triple its production capacity.

The Borouge 2 project, as it is known, will increase Borouge’s annual production capacity to two million tonnes of polyolefins and will include for the first time, polypropylene production.
In June, three agreements worth a total of $3.4 billion were signed by the company.
The first deal worth approximately $1.855 billion went to Tecnimont of Italy for the construction of three new polyolefins units and associated facilities and works while the second contract, for an estimated value of $1.234 billion, was awarded to Tecnicas Reunidas of Spain to construct the offsite and utility facilities for the expanded plant. The third $300 million deal was signed with Samsung Engineering for the construction of a new olefins conversion unit (OCU) for the expansion project.
The contract with Tecnimont – for the construction of three new Borstar-technology polyolefins units and associated material handling facilities, laboratory facilities and marine works – is the largest supplier deal Borouge has signed since its inception as a company in 1998 and was awarded on a lumpsum turnkey basis. The Tecnicas Reunidas contract was awarded on a convertible lump sum turnkey basis. Preliminary work will begin immediately and both contracts are scheduled to be completed in 2010.
The new OCU to be set up by Samsung Engineering will convert ethylene into propylene to feed two new Borstar technology polypropylene plants and will be the world’s largest using ABB Lummus-licensed technology. Total annual output from the OCU will be 752 kilotonnes of propylene plus 39 kilotonnes of butane-1 – totalling 791 kilotonnes. Work on the OCU is expected to be completed by mid-2010.
Harri Bucht, chief executive officer of the Borouge production company comments: “This is a major step forward in our expansion plans and signing these contracts lays down a path towards tripling production capacity by 2010. This is a major project that demonstrates the commitment and ambition not just of Borouge but of the petrochemical industry in the Gulf. We look forward to working closely with our new partners to make it a reality.”
Borouge began the first stage of the construction process in January this year, when it formally signed a $1.3 billion contract with Linde Engineering/CCC for the construction of a new ethylene cracker. The lump sum turnkey contract is for completion in 2010.
Established in 1998 as a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), a major Gulf oil company, and Borealis, a pre-eminent European plastics provider, Borouge is a groundbreaking international partnership delivering innovative plastics solutions to customers throughout the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and Africa. Together, Borouge and Borealis employ unique Borstar-technology to produce differentiated products for high-value infrastructure (water, gas and industrial pipe systems, power and communication cables), automotive and advanced packaging.
Borouge has recently played a pioneering role in the region’s plastic industry by launching the Gulf Plastics Pipe Academy (GPPA), of which it is a founding member.
The GPPA is an independent, non-profit organisation that has been formed to promote the use of specified plastics pipe systems and good installation practices in the greater Middle East region.
A unique organisation, the GPPA represents all stakeholders in the plastic pipe value creation chain – such as polymer producers, pipe and fittings producers, pipe system designers and contractors, pipe installers and utility providers. The goals of the organisation have been discussed with many other companies in the Middle East and beyond, and the response to this initiative has been very positive in every case, according to Borouge.
“The GPPA is committed to raising the knowledge and skills required to develop high quality plastics pipe systems. This will be achieved through developing education and training programmes, promoting standardisation and certification and by encouraging best practice in health, safety and environmental matters,” says a spokesman for Borouge. “It is well recognised that there is a need for more durable and reliable pipe systems to be installed in the greater Middle East region. Borouge believes that adopting better high-quality plastic pipe systems will benefit all stakeholders and, ultimately, result in advanced pipe networks that provide real benefits to communities in the Middle East.
Harald Hammer, chief executive officer of the Borouge marketing company, comments: “We are proud to be a founding member of the Gulf Plastics Pipe Academy – promoting the use of specified plastics pipe systems and good installation practices in the Middle East has never been more important. Robust and leak-free pipe networks are a fundamental element in any country’s infrastructure. Borouge recognises the role it can play to address the global challenge of the availability of clean water and sanitation, and ensure the sustainable development of the communities in which we operate.”
Says Rob Lawrence, chief executive of GPPA: “We are pleased to have the support of Borouge during our establishment period. The GPPA will offer a range of services based on the needs identified by those working throughout the plastics pipe value chain and we expect to be able to address many of the concerns that will come from the exceptionally tough environment in the region. The GPPA’s unique strength is that its members represent all interested parties, enabling it to be a powerful lobby group on behalf of the industry and its customers.”
“The GPPA model also has relevance in the significant pipe markets in India and China where the full benefits of specified plastics pipe systems have yet to be realised,” adds Bjorn Klofelt, vice president of Plastics Pipe Academy Project. “We have had very positive responses to this joint industry educational initiative from several major Indian and Chinese companies.”
Among other developments, construction work is also in progress on a new melamine plant at Borouge’s existing world-scale polymer production facilities. The development would see the creation of a melamine plant with an annual production capacity of 80,000 tonnes. The front end engineering and design phase has begun and it is expected that production would come on stream following the completion of Borouge 2.