Published on December 25, 2017

There has been keen interest from Chinese firms to make investment in naphtha sector in Pakistan. The plan is that they will set up downstream industries, which will partly supply to Pakistan and the rest will be exported. A naphtha cracker will allow exports of chemicals that are being imported currently. Other than PTA, no chemicals are exported. The investment required for a naphtha cracker is enormous, about $3-$4 billion. They are working on a feasibility report, but it will take another 3 months to finalize. There are some engineering companies in Saudi Arabia dominated by Pakistani engineers, and there is a Japanese company working on the feasibility report. Ultimately, the chemical association will pay for the feasibility report, but the bulk of the cost will be shared by the major chemical producers. For the naphtha cracker to be set up in Pakistan will take at least 3 to 5 years. Other than the Chinese, there are also some private companies in GCC countries interested in setting up a naphtha cracker. By mid next year they will know from which country the investment for naphtha cracker is flowing in.