Borouge, a provider of innovative plastics solutions, formally signed three major Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracts valued at approximately $2.6bn for its Borouge 3 strategic expansion in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi, in the UAE.

The signing ceremony took place at the Sheikh Khalifa Energy Complex in Abu Dhabi in the presence of dignitaries from the UAE, South Korea and Italy. The contracts were signed by Abdulaziz Alhajri, CEO of Abu Dhabi Polymers Company (Borouge), Roberto Bertocco, Managing Director of Tecnimont, Kiseok Park, CEO and President of Samsung Engineering, and Jung Kyum Kim, President and CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction.

The first contract worth $1,255bn for the construction of two Borstar enhanced polyethylene and two Borstar enhanced polypropylene units, as well as the second contract worth $400m for the construction of a 350,000 tonnes per year (t/y) low density polyethylene (LDPE) unit, were signed with the Joint Venture consortium Maire Tecnimont of Italy and Samsung Engineering of South Korea, on a lump sum turnkey basis. The annual capacity of the new polyethylene units is 1,080,000 t/y and the new polypropylene units is 960,000 t/y.

A third contract worth $935m for the utilities and off-site facilities for the expanded plant were signed with Hyundai Engineering and Construction of South Korea.

“Signing these contracts represents an important milestone in the fulfilment of Borouge’s growth strategy in the Middle East and Asia. In addition to the pipe, automotive and advanced packaging markets that we serve today, our investment in low-density polyethylene production will spearhead our ability to manufacture innovative solutions for the global wire and cable market.” said Abdulaziz Alhajri, CEO of Abu Dhabi Polymers Company (Borouge) at the signing.

Borouge has previously awarded a $1.075bn contract to Linde Engineering for the construction of the Borouge 3 ethane cracker, while Al Asab General Transportations and Contracting Establishment of Abu Dhabi are executing the Borouge 3 site preparation.

These significant investments will quadruple Borouge’s production capacity to over 4.5 million tonnes per year by 2013, making it the largest integrated polyolefins site in the world.

Borouge is a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, and Borealis, a leading provider of chemical and innovative plastics solutions.