SABIC bullish on prospects in China

Saudi Arabia-based SABIC, one of the world's largest petrochemical firms, plans to deepen its investment and collaborative partnerships in China, as it has been leveraging the country's continuously optimized business environment and long-standing mutual trust to enhance its presence in the fast-growing Asian market.

Confident in the trajectory of China's economic development, SABIC CEO Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh said he always views the transformation of China's manufacturing sector as a significant global opportunity for the chemical industry and the broader economy.

China's clear focus on sustainable and high-quality development provides excellent direction for multinational chemical companies. This development model is guiding industrial transformation, offering new avenues for growth for innovation-driven companies like SABIC.

China's vigorous cultivation of new quality productive forces and transformation toward innovation-driven growth aligned closely with SABIC's core philosophy. SABIC is privileged to witness and participate in China's innovation-driven development journey, Al-Fageeh said.

SABIC's four-decade-long relationship with China has matured into a "collaboration" and "partnership" that transcends simple trade, marking the market as a strategic priority for joint innovation and technology deployment, Al-Fageeh said.

"The company is enhancing its investments in China, specifically through joint ventures and technological collaboration built on mutual benefits and shared visions," he said, referring to the 44.8 billion yuan ($6.4 billion) world-scale petrochemical complex SABIC is building in Fujian province in tandem with Fujian Energy Petrochemical Group Co Ltd.

The high-end chemical products to be produced at the complex, another centerpiece of SABIC's growing investment footprint in China, are expected to support a wide range of applications that drive economic growth in China.

The company, based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, also plans a fourth plant in China, demonstrating the petrochemical giant's commitment to further expand its presence in the country's petrochemical sector.

SABIC is also actively using its Shanghai technology center to create customized solutions specifically for the changing needs of the Chinese market, focusing on rapidly expanding sectors like electric vehicles and renewable energy.

Al-Fageeh emphasized that this continued investment and efforts such as developing high-quality and tailored solutions using advanced technologies are fundamentally driven by the need to satisfy increasing customer needs within China.

"As one of the first global companies to have entered the market, SABIC, initially as product distributors for many years, has been evolving into a provider of technological solutions to the challenges that the industry is facing in China," he said.

Industry experts believe that the continued outlook for China's petrochemical sector is strong, largely underpinned by the country's ongoing efforts to open its markets and provide enhanced policy support for foreign investment.

The China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation forecasts that the sector is set to achieve increased profits this year, marking a significant recovery after a challenging period.

Fu Xiangsheng, vice-president of the CPCIF, said the industry stabilized last year and is now on a recovery trajectory, driven by factors such as rebounding global oil prices, growing domestic consumption and solid government support.

Al-Fageeh attributed China's continuing appeal as a priority market to its strong growth and evolving policies that support foreign businesses.

He described Asia as one of the fastest-growing regions globally, particularly for petrochemical products, and acknowledged the positive steps China has taken to create a supportive economic climate.

"We have seen that a lot of policies in China have been evolving and improving in the last decade," he said, adding that the continuously optimized business environment "will give us an opportunity for partnership, the partnership between Asian countries".

He reiterated that the company's investment is heavily weighted toward the Middle East and Asia due to its rapid expansion.

"We found that Asia is one of the largest growth regions that we need to have a focus on. So now we focus on Asia, because it is one of the fastest growing economies. It is one of the fastest-growing regions, and especially for the petrochemical products we are producing."