Adnoc is buying Mubadala Investment Company’s 25 per cent stake in Austrian chemicals producer Borealis.
The deal will allow the state-owned oil and gas producer to expand its international footprint in the fast-growing chemicals and petrochemical sector, Adnoc and Mubadala said on Friday.
This is expected to lead to new opportunities in important markets such as Europe and the Americas.
“Globally, the chemicals and petrochemical sector is poised for significant consumer-led growth in the decades ahead,” said Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and Adnoc's managing director and group chief executive.
“Alongside OMV, Adnoc will be a co-shareholder in Borealis, with this investment giving further impetus to our local and international petrochemical and industrial growth programme, and accelerating our transformation into an integrated and global energy player.”
Upon completion of the transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, the remaining 75 per cent of Borealis will be controlled by OMV, a Vienna-listed integrated oil, gas and petrochemical company.
The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed by the companies.
In October 2020, Abu Dhabi’s strategic investment arm Mubadala reduced its stake in Borealis to 25 per cent after it sold 39 per cent to OMV in a $4.68 billion deal.
“We have partnered with OMV and Adnoc for two decades to build Borealis into a global champion,” said Khaldoon Al Mubarak, managing director and group chief executive of Mubadala.
“Now the time is right for OMV and Adnoc to take this partnership to the next level, capitalising on synergies with the wider Adnoc portfolio.”
The move to acquire the stake is part of Adnoc’s plans to speed up the delivery of its downstream and industrial growth programme and further expand its long-standing partnership with Borealis.
Borealis, which is based in Vienna, is the eighth-largest producer of compounds such as polythene and polypropylene that find varied uses in packaging, plastics and acrylics industries.
It provides services and products to customers globally, both directly and in collaboration with Borouge, a joint venture with Adnoc.
Borouge is currently going through a large capacity addition as part of Adnoc's plans to boost petrochemical production capacity under its strategy to invest $45bn with partners in the downstream sector.
Adnoc and Borealis signed a $6.2bn partnership agreement in November to develop Borouge's fourth plant. The feedstock for the planned expansion will be supplied by Adnoc.
In January, the companies confirmed that they had started construction of the plant within the polyolefin manufacturing complex in Ruwais.
Borouge will produce polyolefin products such as polythene and polypropylene at the new factory, as well as non-polyolefin products such as benzene and butadiene.
With the addition of the new unit, Borouge could produce enough polyolefins to manufacture pipes to supply water to 35 million households, the company said.
The products will support a wide range of uses and be used in products such as industrial-grade pipes, cables, films and personal protective equipment.
With the operation of the new unit, overall polyolefin output will reach 6.4 million tonnes, making Borouge the largest-single production site for polyolefins.
The plant will complement the local supply chain and meet the projected growth in demand for polyolefins in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, while providing critical feedstock to the Taz’iz Industrial Chemicals Zone in Ruwais, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said at the time.
The UAE plans to triple its petrochemical production capacity from 4.5 million tonnes — currently produced entirely by the Borouge factory — by 2025.
In February, Adnoc and Borealis also announced that they were considering a potential initial public offering of a minority stake in Borouge.
No further details were given, and the two companies said they will provide further material updates “as and when appropriate”.
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Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
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SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Atalanta v Juventus (6pm)
AC Milan v Napoli (9pm)
Torino v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
Sunday
Bologna v Parma (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Lazio (6pm)
Roma v Brescia (6pm)
Verona v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Udinese (9pm)
Lecce v Cagliari (11.45pm)
Monday
SPAL v Genoa (11.45pm)
UAE Premiership
Results
Dubai Exiles 24-28 Jebel Ali Dragons
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 43-27 Dubai Hurricanes
Final
Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons, Friday, March 29, 5pm at The Sevens, Dubai
Match info
Australia 580
Pakistan 240 and 335
Result: Australia win by an innings and five runs
Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
- US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
- Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
- Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
- Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
- Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
- The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
- Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
- Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
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If you go…
Emirates launched a new daily service to Mexico City this week, flying via Barcelona from Dh3,995.
Emirati citizens are among 67 nationalities who do not require a visa to Mexico. Entry is granted on arrival for stays of up to 180 days.
'Dark Waters'
Directed by: Todd Haynes
Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, William Jackson Harper
Rating: ****
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
