Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tareq el Mulla confirmed the Egyptian petrochemical industry will see a quantum leap in the coming period in light of ongoing new projects, which are being carried out at total investments estimated at nearly $8 billion.
Mulla pointed out to the integrated refining and petrochemicals complex in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), which is built at investments of about $7.5 billion.
He said, in statements on Wednesday, that contracts have been recently signed with US’s Bechtel Corp. and France’s Exness Company for licensing the project with the participation of Enppi and Petrojet to carry out main engineering work and layouts, in addition to providing required technologies.
Under the contract, Exness will provide the required technology for manufacturing licenses at the mazut hydrogen cracking complex and the aromatics production and separation complex with a total of seven licenses, representing 50% of the total number of the project’s licenses.
Accordingly, the complex will be able to produce various petrochemical products, such as benzol, paraxylene, and low-sulfur vessel fuel in accordance with IMO 2020 regulations.
The project will produce high-quality petrochemical products to meet local demands and export the surplus.
The minister said an update was introduced to the national plan for petrochemicals until 2040 in a move, which, he added, will mainly contribute to maximizing the surplus of natural resources.
Mulla commended efforts exerted by the Egyptian Petrochemicals Holding Company, affirming the importance of sticking to timetables for carrying out new projects and removing any obstacles.
