MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), on Thursday said he expects the company's deal with Saudi Aramco to materialise this year, said Reuters.
Meanwhile, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, chairman of Saudi Aramco and the Governor of the Public Investment Fund, joined the board of Reliance as an independent director.
Speaking at the company's annual general meeting, Ambani said "As an important part of this vision of achieving accelerated growth, we look forward to welcoming Saudi Aramco as a strategic partner in our O2C business." Despite several challenges due to covid-19, "we have made substantial progress in the past year in our discussions", he added.
RIL had in 2019 announced its interest to sell 20% stake in the company’s flagship chemicals and refining business to Saudi Aramco in a deal valued at USD15 billion. Last fiscal, RIL carved out its oil-to-chemicals business into a separate entity, to facilitate onboarding of strategic partners like Aramco.
O2C undertaking of the company comprises of entire oil-to-chemicals business consisting of refining, petrochemicals, fuel retail & aviation fuel (majority interest only) and bulk wholesale marketing businesses together with its assets and liabilities. O2C’s aim, RIL said, is to maximize crude to chemicals conversion while creating a sustainable growth business.
Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
Reliance Industries is one of the world's largest producers of polymers. The company produces polypropylene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride and other petrochemical products.
MRC