Joint venture to support TA’ZIZ mission to diversify the UAE’s economy and accelerate industrial development, enabling local supply chains through the production of new chemicals in the UAE

Agreement marks next step in the strategic partnership between TA’ZIZ and Reliance to produce Chlor-Alkali, Ethylene Dichloride and Polyvinyl Chloride at world-scale in Ruwais

First investment by Reliance in the region strengthens ties between the UAE and India

Agreement advances progress at TA’ZIZ with continued strong local and international investor interest

Mumbai, December 7, 2021: Abu Dhabi Chemicals Derivatives Company RSC Ltd (“TA’ZIZ”) and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), have agreed to launch ‘TA’ZIZ EDC & PVC’, a world-scale chemical production partnership at the TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone in Ruwais. The new joint-venture will construct and operate a Chlor-Alkali, Ethylene Dichloride (EDC) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) production facility, with an investment of more than $2 billion. Representing the first production of these chemicals in the UAE, the project will enable the substitution of imports and the creation of new local value chains, while also meeting growing demand for these chemicals globally. The TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and ADQ.

The project builds on ADNOC and Reliance’s long-standing strategic partnership and is Reliance’s first investment in the MENA region. The signing of the joint venture terms, which are subject to regulatory approvals, was witnessed by His Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO and Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director, Mr. Mukesh D. Ambani. The joint venture terms were signed by Mr. Khaleefa Al Mheiri, Acting CEO of TA’ZIZ and Mr. Kamal Nanavaty, President Strategy and Business Development of Reliance Industries Limited.
 

 

 

 

The chemicals have a wide range of industrial applications, enabling local supply chains and meeting growing demand in key export markets. Chlor-Alkali enables the production of caustic soda, crucial to the alumina refining process. EDC is used in the production of PVC, which is used to manufacture a wide range of industrial and consumer products including pipes, windows fittings, cables, films and flooring. The production of Chlor-Alkali, EDC, and PVC will create opportunities for export to target markets in Southeast Asia and Africa, as well as providing local industry with a source of critical raw materials manufactured in the UAE for the first time, strengthening In-Country Value.

Chemicals is a priority sector for the UAE’s industrial growth strategy, championed by the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, which has the goal to raise the UAE’s industrial sector’s contribution of national GDP to AED300 billion by 2031. Chemicals are an attractive sector given projected demand growth globally and the opportunity local production creates to enable new supply chains.

Today’s agreement builds on significant interest in TA’ZIZ received from local and international investors in recent months. TA’ZIZ comprises three zones, the first of which is an Industrial Chemicals Zone that will host chemicals production, with seven world-scale projects already in the design phase. The second is a Light Industrial Zone, which will be home to downstream conversion industries that will convert the outputs of the Chemical Zone into consumable products and, finally, an Industrial Services Zone that will house a variety of companies providing the necessary services required by the TA’ZIZ industrial zones and the wider Ruwais Industrial Complex.

The Ta’ziz Industrial Chemical Zone projects are currently in the design phase with project start up targeted in 2025.