Solvay said it will form a 50/50 joint venture with Sadara Chemical Company for the construction and operation of a hydrogen peroxide plant in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Scheduled to be operational in the second half of 2015, this new plant is intended to supply hydrogen peroxide as a raw material for the manufacture of propylene oxide by Sadara at its world-scale, fully integrated chemicals complex. Propylene oxide is used to produce propylene glycol, polyurethanes and glycol ethers. Solvay said it will use its proprietary, high-yield hydrogen peroxide technology for the world-scale plant.

The proposed hydrogen peroxide megaplant in Saudi Arabia will be Solvay's third. The Solvay Group operates today a 230 kt/y megaplant in Antwerp, Belgium, and is currently commissioning a 330 kt/y megaplant in Map Ta Phut, Thailand. By using the advanced hydrogen peroxide to propylene oxide (HPPO) technology, it is possible to reduce both the capital intensity and the environmental footprint of propylene oxide production compared to conventional production technologies.