Site

The PetroRabigh refinery is a major integrated refining and petrochemical complex located on the Red Sea coast in Rabigh City, Saudi Arabia. The refinery processes 400,000 barrels per day (b/d) of arabian light crude oill, making it one of the largest single refining units globally using crude oil distillation. In addition to crude oil, the refinery processes 1.2–1.6 million tonnes per year of ethane and smaller quantities of butane. The combined Phase I and Phase II complex produces over 25 mtpa of refining and petrochemical products from a single integrated site fed by crude oil piped directly from Saudi Aramco's supply network.

Photo: Petro Rabigh expansion project | Source: METenders.com

Phase I — Original Complex

The original Petro Rabigh complex was developed at a total investment of approximately USD 10 billion, with 25% funded by the public through the IPO and the remainder equally funded by Saudi Aramco and Sumitomo Chemical at incorporation. The facility was built around an existing Saudi Aramco crude oil refinery at Rabigh, which was upgraded and integrated with a world-scale petrochemical complex.

At full Phase I capacity, the complex produced:

• 18.4 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of petroleum-based products

• 2.4 mtpa of ethylene and propylene-based derivatives

Principal Phase I units included a crude distillation unit, naphtha cracker, and downstream polymer and chemical derivative units producing polyethylene, polypropylene, and ethylene oxide/glycol products.

Phase II — Rabigh II Expansion

The Rabigh II expansion project, valued at approximately USD 9 billion, significantly broadened the complex's product portfolio and deepened the refinery-petrochemical integration. Construction was completed and full production was reached in Q4 2017. Rabigh II introduced a wide range of high-value-added specialty products, several of which were manufactured for the first time in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East region.

Key additions from Rabigh II include:

• Chlor-alkali complex (chlorine, caustic soda, ethylene dichloride) — first in Saudi Arabia

• Butyl rubber plant — first in the Middle East

• Cumene and phenol units

• Methyl methacrylate (MMA) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) — first in the Middle East

• Ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber

• Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

• Epoxy resins

• Additional polypropylene and speciality chemicals capacity