The Yanbu National Petrochemical Company (YANSAB) announces the preliminary financial results for the first nine months of 2008. Pre-operating losses amounted to SAR 18 million compared to pre-operating losses of SAR 22.3 million during the same period in 2007, a drop of 19.3 percent. Loss per share is SAR 0.032 compared to SAR 0.040 in the same period in 2007. Total pre-operating losses during the third quarter of this year are SAR 4.9 million compared to losses of SAR 8.2 million in the third quarter of 2007, a decline of 40.2 percent.
Losses reported at this stage are normal given that YANSAB complex is still under construction. All profits and losses shown are income and non-operating expenses.
Mutlaq Al-Morished, Chairman of the Board of Directors of YANSAB and SABIC Vice President for Corporate Finance reported: “Engineering and supply works of most of the complex units are almost complete. We are now focusing on the final stages of construction on site. Despite massive challenges in the field of construction, however, thanks to the joint efforts, the level of progress at the end of September 2008 in construction alone is 88.2 percent. Average progress for engineering, procurement and construction as a whole, as at end of September, is 94.8 percent. The company has continued, during the third quarter of 2008, receiving more notices of completion from different units of plants. In addition, the pace of tests and commissioning works have increased in many of the units already handed-over. During the 3Q2008, production has commenced at different utilities such as of water chilling and steam. Startup of plants pre-operating works are expected by end of 2008 subsequent to which commissioning startup is on schedule”.
About SABIC
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) is the world’s 5th largest petrochemicals company. The company is among the world’s market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
SABIC’s profit rose to a record SR 27 billion (US$ 7.2 billion) in 2007, a 33% increase over 2006. Sales revenues for 2007 totalled SR 126.2 billion (US$ 33.7 billion), the highest revenues achieved by the company since its inception. Total assets stood at SR 256 billion (US$ 68.3 billion) at the end of 2007.
SABIC operates six interlinked strategic business units: Basic Chemicals, Intermediates, Specialty Products, Polymers, Fertilizers and Metals. In 2007 SABIC Innovative Plastics was launched as a global manufacturer and supplier of highly engineered thermoplastics. SABIC has significant research resources and has 16 dedicated Research and Technology and application centers in the Middle East, the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company operates in more than 40 countries across the world with over 31,000 employees worldwide.
In Saudi Arabia, the company has 20 world-scale complexes and 19 of them are located in the industrial cities of Al-Jubail and Yanbu. Some of these complexes are operated with multi-national joint venture partners such as ExxonMobil, Shell and Mitsubishi Chemicals. Elsewhere, SABIC manufactures on a global scale in more than 45 countries in the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. SABIC’s overall production has increased from 27 million metric tons in 2001 to 55 million metric tons in 2007.
Headquartered in Riyadh, SABIC was founded in 1976 when the Saudi Arabian Government decided to use the hydrocarbon gases associated with its oil production as the principal feedstock for production of chemicals, polymers and fertilizers. The Saudi Arabian Government owns 70 percent of SABIC shares with the remaining 30 percent held by private investors in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
