India’s Reliance to build $2 billion petrochemical plant in UAE

(Bloomberg) --The United Arab Emirates and Reliance Industries Ltd. agreed to build a $2 billion petrochemical plant, the Indian company’s first such investment in the Middle East.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. and Reliance are looking to turn hydrocarbons into products that will help them tap consumer demand for plastics. The accord builds on a 2019 framework deal to cooperate on petrochemicals, and a further agreement this year to work together at the Ruwais refining hub in Abu Dhabi.

The collaboration will see the establishment of a joint venture at Ta’ziz, the chemicals and industrial complex under development at Ruwais, according to a statement on Tuesday. It comes as the UAE, the No. 3 oil producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, is investing billions in crude and natural gas output to make higher-value petroleum products.

ADNOC, which pumps most of the Persian Gulf country’s oil and gas, aims to attract around $5 billion into the Ta’ziz project.

Reliance, the operator of the world’s biggest refining complex, last month scrapped a plan to sell a stake in its oil-to-chemicals unit to Saudi Aramco.