ADNOC, Borealis advance Bourouge 4 petrochemicals expansion

Abu Dhabi Polymers Co. Ltd. (Borouge), a joint venture of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) and Borealis AG, has taken final investment decision (FID) to move forward with the partnership’s previously proposed fourth expansion of Borouge’s integrated polyolefins complex in Ruwais, about 250 km west of Abu Dhabi City, UAE (OGJ Online, Jan. 17, 2020; July 18, 2017).

Signed in mid-November, the $6.2-billion FID agreement enables construction of the Borouge 4 polyolefin manufacturing complex—including a new 1.5 million tonnes ethane cracker, two polyethylene plants based on Borealis’ proprietary Borstar technology, and a cross-linked polyethylene plant—that will produce 1.4 million tpy of polyethylene to help meet increased demand for polyolefins by manufacturers across the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific, ADNOC said.

Following startup, ADNOC said the Borouge 4 plant also will enable the next phase of growth of Ruwais’ broader industrial complex by allowing the Borouge partnership to supply feedstock to the TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone, one of three special industrial ecosystems under development by ADNOC and UAE’s ADQ that specifically aims to anchor a host of petrochemical projects by both domestic and outside investors.

Scheduled to become operational by yearend 2025, the Borouge 4 complex will boost the operator’s Ruwais sitewide production capacity of polyolefins—including polyethylene and polypropylene—to 6.4 million tpy from its current 4.5-million tpy capacity to make it largest single-site polyolefins complex in the world, according to ADNOC.

With construction activities already under way and major contracts for the project awarded, startup of the Borouge 4 complex will follow the pending commissioning by yearend 2021 of the Borouge partnership’s fifth polypropylene plant (PP5) at Ruwais that, once online, will have a maximum production capacity of 480,000 tpy (OGJ Online, Mar. 21, 2019; July 13, 2018).

Borouge 4 additional plans

Alongside confirming FID for Borouge 4, ADNOC also said the partnership is considering implementation of a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project at Ruwais.

Still awaiting an in-depth study, the proposed CCS project—which could be operational in time for Borouge 4’s commissioning—would involve installation of a unit equipped to reduce carbon dioxide emissions at the site by 80%, according to ADNOC.

The potential CCS unit comes as part of ADNOC’s recent initiatives on clean energy, decarbonizing its power supply through access to Abu Dhabi’s clean power sources, and other sustainability measures to improve operational efficiency and reduce emissions in line with the UAE’s Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative.