OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED: Najib receives a token of appreciation from Shamsul after delivering a speech for the official announcement of the Petronas Rapid Project yesterday.
KUALA LUMPUR: Petronas expects the detailed feasibility study for the proposed Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Project (RAPID) project in Southern Johor to be finalised before year-end, said president and chief executive Datuk Shamsul Azhar Abbas.
“At this point of time, we are in the process of finalising the product stage. Once that is finalised in September we will identify the right partner as the partnership will depend on the product stage,” he told reporters after the project was annouced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday.
He said the partner must be high-end petrohemicals companies as the project involved high-end technology. Shamsul said the final investment decision for the Rapid project, estimated at US$20 billion, would be made by the Petronas board by end-2012. The project, to be commissioned by end-2016, would comprise a crude oil refinery, a naphtha cracker and, a petrochemicals and polymer complex.
The crude oil refinery would also have a processing capacity of 300,000 barrels per day for the production of petroleum products such as gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and fuel oil. It would also have a three million tonnes per year naphtha cracker and petrochemical derivatives complexes focusing on synthetic rubbers.
To support the development of Rapid, Petronas was also looking at the possibility of building a new liquefied natural gas receiving and re-gasification terminal in the area. The facility would not only support the energy needs of the complex but would also contribute towards diversifying gas supply sources to meet existing and future demand in Peninsular Malaysia. — Bernama