Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) in a press release today reported a record net profit of SR4.9 billion (US $1.3 billion) for the first nine months of 1995, nearly double the figure of SR2.5 billion (about $700 million) for the same period last year. SABIC's Vice Chairman and Managing Director Ibrahim Bin Salamah said that the sharp rise in the corporation's income was the result of both increased production and this year's upturn of the international market for several SABIC products. Over the period from January to September of 1995 production reached 15 million metric tons, up from the 14 million tons produced in the corresponding period last year. This increase is attributable to new projects that recently came on stream, for example the ethylhexanol project at SAMAD (Al-Jubail fertilizer company) and the polyester plant of Ibn Rushd (the Arabian industrial fibers company), both of which began operations this year.

Mr. Bin Salamah said: "SABIC's production capacity has consistently increased over the past years and will go up farther this year and over the coming years. This, combined with our rapidly diversifying product portfolio, has considerably enhanced SABIC's position in the international market and will continue to do so." He added that SABIC's growth is now effectively supported by its new world-scale research and development complex, further helping the process of industrialization in Saudi Arabia and strengthening the Kingdom's technological capabilities, and noted that the bulk of SABIC's production was exported to overseas markets after meeting the requirements of the downstream industries in the Saudi private sector. SABIC's profit for the year 1994 was SR4.2 billion, which in itself was a record. The figure for the nine months of 1995 indicates that a new earnings record will be made this year.

Return