TURKEY: SOCAR, BP postpone decision on construction of petrochemical complex in Turkey until late 2021
The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) and the British company BP have postponed the final investment decision on the construction of the Mercury petrochemical complex in the Aliaga district of Izmir (western city of Turkey) until the end of 2021, local media reported on 10 April 2020.
“There have been some delays in our investment calendar in Turkey. The fact that the price of a barrel of oil is around USD 20-30 has affected both us and our partners. In this regard, the final investment decision on the Mercury project, scheduled for the end of 2020, has been postponed to the fourth quarter of next year,” CEO of SOCAR Turkey Zaur Gahramanov stated.
As it was reported earlier, the construction of the complex was planned to begin this year. The enterprise was planned to be commissioned in 2023-2025. The new complex will be built next to the Petkim petrochemical complex and the STAR refinery. The value of the project is estimated at USD 1.8 billion. The share of the parties in the project is 50/50. It is expected that the construction of a new petrochemical complex will allow Turkey to annually cover the current account deficit at USD 6 billion.
On 20 December 2018, SOCAR and BP signed an agreement on the evaluation of plans to establish a joint venture for the construction and management of a world-class petrochemical complex in Turkey. The project provides for the construction in the Aliaga area, of a plant producing 1.25 million t/y of purified terephthalic acid (PTA), 840,000 t/y of paraxylene (PX) and 340,00 t/y of benzene.
Source: Daily “AzerNews”, Baku, Azerbaijan; 11 Apr 2020
(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)