Page 8 - DMEA Week 04 2022

DMEA COMPANIES DMEA

Advanced announces

plan buy back shares

MIDDLE EAST SAUDI Arabia’s Advanced Petrochemical the Ministry of Energy for the construction of a
intends to issue bonus shares as it seeks to new plastics facility at Jubail on the Kingdom’s
increase the company’s capital by around 20%. Gulf coast.
A filing with the local Tadawul All Share In a March 10 Tadawul filing, the com-
Index (TASI), the Saudi stock exchange, said the pany said it had been permitted to allocate the
firm’s board had recommended the issuance of required feedstock for the plant in Jubail Indus-
bonus shares to increase Advanced’s share cap- trial City 2.
ital from SAR2.16bn ($576mn) to SAR2.6bn The new unit will have a cracking capacity
($693mn). of 1.15mn tonnes per year of ethylene, 850,000
The document said that shareholders would tpy of propylene and 400,000 tpy combined of
be granted one bonus share for every five shares aromatics and fuels once it comes into operation
held, with the move to be financed through stat- in late 2025.
utory reserves and retained earnings. Advanced Petrochemical is expanding its
Advanced said: “The purpose of [the pur- footprint at Jubail – the heart of Saudi Arabia’s
chase is] to retain them as treasury shares for [the petrochemical industry – and will kick off con-
Employee Shares Incentive Programme].” struction work this year on a propane dehydro-
It added: “In the case of any bonus shares genation (PDH) unit and a polypropylene (PP)
having fractions, these will be consolidated in plant.
one portfolio for all shareholders and sold at the The plants will have capacities of 843,000 tpy
market price, then their value will be distrib- of propylene and 800,000 tpy of PP respectively.
uted to the eligible shareholders for the issue, The firm’s 85%-owned Advanced Polyolefins
each according to his share within a period not Co. (APOC) subsidiary agreed an eight-year,
exceeding 30 days from the date of determining $800mn loan with the Saudi International Devel-
the shares due to each shareholder.” opment Fund (SIDF) to part-fund the develop-
The move comes as the company aims to ment of the units which will begin operations in
expand its portfolio. In March last year, one of late 2024. Advanced’s stake in APOC is held by
Advanced’s subsidiaries – Advanced Global AGIC, with the remaining 15% held by South
Investment Co. (AGIC) – received approval from Korea’s SK Gas Petrochemical.™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 04 27•January•2022