Versalis, the wholly owned subsidiary of Italian oil and gas major Eni, is to form a joint venture with Petrochem and Mazrui Energy Services to commercialize innovative chemicals for the oil & gas industry in the Middle East.

The move follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Versalis and Mazrui Energy Services in November 2017.

Petrochem is a subsidiary of Mazrui Energy Services, which itself is part of Mazrui International, a family-owned company based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), with a diversified portfolio of businesses across six sectors, one of which is energy.

Stakes in the new jv, which will be called Versalis Petrochem Mazrui (VPM), were not disclosed. Versalis said the partnership with Mazrui will enable greater proximity to customers along with the ability to compete against the major players in the market.

It will also enable the Italian company to extend its oilfield chemicals business to the Middle East, particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council countries of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman, as well as Yemen and Iraq.

VPM will mainly use locally manufactured oilfield chemicals with the partnership looking to leverage its R&D capabilities to guarantee “flexible, responsive and personalized services.”