Malaysia’s national oil company Petronas has formed two joint ventures with Saudi Aramco for the Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) project in the southern state of Johor. The move comes more than a year after the two had signed a deal giving the Saudi oil giant a 50% stake in RAPID, part of Petronas’ Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC).

Under terms of the jvs, which have not been named, Saudi Aramco will supply 50% of the refinery’s crude feedstock requirements with the option of increasing to 70%. Natural gas, power and other utilities will be supplied by Petronas and its affiliates. Both companies will share output from the jvs on an equal basis.

The refinery, which will have a capacity of 300,000 barrels of oil per day, will produce a range of refined petroleum products as well as feedstock for the 3.3 million t/y integrated petrochemical complex. Construction is 87% complete with the project on track for refinery start-up in Q1 2019. The derivative units are expected to be commissioned in 2020.

Petronas’ executive vice president and CEO downstream, Datuk Md Srif Mahmood, said the development will soon be moving into pre-commissioning and commissioning activities, adding that once operational, RAPID will not only strengthen Petronas’ flexibility and reliability in meeting customers’ needs, but will also boost the group’s position as the largest glycol and PP producer, as well as the second largest HDPE and isononanol producer, in Southeast Asia.

Abdulaziz Judaimi, Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president of downstream, said that the partnership would also pave the way for future collaboration between the two companies.