Uhde submitted the lowest price for the MDPE plant, which will have capacity of 300,000 tonnes a year (t/y). The German firm is competing against Italy's Tecnimont and South Korea's Daelim Engineers & Construction Company. Technology for the MDPE unit will be provided by Europe's Basell.

Paris-based Technip-Coflexip, in partnership with the local Nargan Consulting Engineers, has the contracts to build the 300,000-t/y low-density polyethylene (LDPE) unit and the 1 million-t/y ethane cracker (MEED 28:12:01).

In addition to providing feedstock to the complex's PE units, the cracker will feed 220,000 t/y of ethylene to a styrene monomer plant, which is being built by the UK office of Italy's Snamprogettiin partnership with the local Sazeh Consultants. The remaining ethylene is earmarked for export (MEED 31:1:03).

NPC and Sasol are the joint owners of the cracker and PE units, following the signing of the 50:50 joint venture agreement on 9 February. The agreement was originally structured as a 60:40 venture but was subsequently revised.

Olefins 9 is located in the Pars Special Economic Energy Zone near Bandar Assaluyeh.