Kuwait is planning to invest nearly $8 billion into petrochemical projects in Bahrain and other countries over the coming years, according to the Al-Anba newspaper. The projects include new plants as well as expansions of existing facilities owned jointly by Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC).

"PIC is considering many other investment opportunities in several countries…the total costs of the company's projects are expected to exceed $8 billion in the next five years," CEO Mohammed Al-Farhoud, told the Kuwaiti paper.

One project includes a paraxylene plant in Bahrain to be jointly owned by PIC and Bahrain’s state-owned National Oil and Gas Authority. Another is the previously announced 750,000 t/y ethylene glycol plant in Freeport, Texas, US, due for completion in October 2019. A contract for this plant, to be operated by MEGlobal, PIC’s joint venture with Dow Chemical, was signed with Jacobs Engineering last November.

PIC also has plans to build a propylene and plant and a 550,000 t/y PP plant in Alberta, Canada. This project, which was originally announced in April 2016, will proceed as a 50:50 joint venture with Canada’s Pembina Pipeline. The newly formed company, Canada Kuwait Petrochemical Corp. (CKPC), will make a final investment decision on the plant in late 2018.

Al-Farhoud added that another PP plant will be built in South Korea, with a capacity of 400,000 t/y. A study is currently underway with PIC’s joint venture partners.

In January 2016, PIC said it planned to acquire a stake in a joint venture propane dehydrogenation plant in South Korea. The plant, which started operation in 2016 and produces 600,000 t/y propylene, is owned by SK Advanced, which in turn is held 45% by SK Gas, 30% by Advanced Global Investment Company and 25% by PIC.