Saudi International Petrochemicals Company (Sipchem) has started searching for a financial adviser for the development of its $1.1bn polymers project at Jubail.

Sipchem has started meeting banks about the advisory mandate. The presentations by banks to pitch for the mandate should be complete by the end of February, according to bankers in the country.

Sipchem signed an agreement with South Korea’s Hanwha Chemicals Corporation in July 2009 to develop the Jubail plant. It will be 75 per cent owned by Sipchem and 25 per cent by Hanwha.

The two companies plan to build a 200,000-tonne-a-year (t/y) ethyl vinyl acetate plant with production capacity of 125,000 t/y of polyvinyls. The plant is due to be completed in 2013.

Sipchem’s last major project financing deal was in September 2008 when it raised $741m with the help of the UK’s HSBC and its Saudi affiliate Sabb. The money was used for the development of an acetyls project, also at Jubail (MEED 23:9:09).