Qapco is owned 80% by QP (IQ) and 20% by Atofina (a Total unit
which in September 2002 bought Enichem's 10% stake). Its complex at
Umm Said has the following capacity: a 525,000 t/y ethylene plant,
expanded in mid-1996 from 304,000 t/y and expanded to 725,000 t/y in a
project completed in 2006 (see background in Vol. 61, DT No. 11); a
430,000 t/y LDPE plant, raised in mid-1996 from 180,000 t/y and in
2003/04 from 380,000 t/y through de-bottlenecking.
Basell was in April 2007 selected to licence its Lupotech T
technology for Qapco's new 250,000 t/y LDPE unit. It beat
competition from Polymeri Europe of Italy. The new unit will take
advantage of surplus ethylene at Mesaieed. A further de-bottlenecking of
Qapco's ethane cracker, to be completed later this year, is to
provide the plant with more than 100,000 t/y of feedstock, while a
further 180,000 t/y will come via an ethylene pipeline from Ras Laffan
from 2008.
Qatar Vinyl Co. (QVC) at Mesaieed started up in April 2001 with a
capacity of 180,000 t/y of EDC, 290,000 t/y of caustic soda and chlorine
and 230,000 t/y of VCM. Its ethylene feedstock is supplied by Qapco.
QVC's plant has cost about $700m and has its own 120 MW power
station. A second phase of QVC involves PVC unit and doubling the VCM
capacity.
The partners in QVC are: QP (25.5%), Qapco (31.9%), Norsk Hydro of
Norway (29.7%), and Atofina (12.9%). Qapco in late 1995 opted against a
partnership with OxyChem of the US. Norsk Hydro is QP's partner in
the fertiliser complex of Qafco at Mesaieed. QVC was formed in early
1997 (see down11QatrPetchmSep12-05).
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