Investment Ministry, Satorp to expand Amiral petrochemical complex’s downstream industries

Jubail gets a downstream boost: The Amiral petrochemical complex in Jubail is set for further expansion after our Investment Ministry and Satorp — an Aramco and TotalEnergies refining JV — signed an agreement to develop and expand downstream industries linked to the USD 11 bn project, the Energy Ministry said on X.

The scope: The agreement focuses on scaling up chemicals and semi-finished products, improving production efficiency, reducing logistics costs, and making better use of domestic resources.

Why Amiral matters: Set to come online in 2027, Amiral is a part of Aramco’s liquids-to-chemicals push. Roughly half of its output will feed into advanced petrochemicals, while the rest is expected to be exported, helping widen Saudi Arabia’s non-oil trade base, according to state news agency SPA..

What’s inside the complex: Amiral contains a mixed-feed cracker with an annual capacity of 1.7 mn tons of ethylene (among the largest in the GCC), two polyethylene units of 500k tons per year each, a butadiene extraction unit, and several downstream derivatives. Feedstock will come from Satorp and Aramco, while hydrogen from the process will replace methane as fuel in refinery furnaces as part of decarbonization efforts.

How it fits into the Jubail ecosystem: Beyond the main plant, Amiral is expected to unlock USD 4 bn of additional downstream investments in petrochemicals and chemical plants in Jubail. These new plants will rely on Amiral feedstock to produce carbon fibers, lubricants, drilling fluids, detergents, food additives, automotive parts, and tires.

Supporting utilities are already underway: In February, the Power and Water Utility Company for Jubail and Yanbu (Marafiq) reached financial close on a USD 500 mn (SAR 1.9 bn) wastewater treatment and reuse facility, which will convert industrial effluents into demineralized water for reuse at Amiral.