Kuwait Petroleum Corp. is inviting investors to build a chemical plant that would make maleic anhydride out of n-butene supplied by the nationally owned oil company.
Maleic anhydride is a crystalline substance used to make lubricant additives such as corrosion inhibitors and detergents, and also to make plastic resins, polyesters and other materials. Kuwait is an oil-rich country but does not currently have facilities making maleic anhydride.
Kuwait Petroleum published its invitation for investors earlier this month, according to articles by local news organizations. The company’s notice stated that it is willing to enter contracts to supply up to 30,000 metric tons per year of n-butene to be used as feedstock to produce the chemical.
The notice set a number of conditions, including that the plant be built within Kuwait’s borders and that the investor build a pipeline to transport the feedstock.
The notice set a deadline of Sept. 22 for interested parties to submit proposals, which must describe the potential investor’s experience with maleic and whether it owns the technology that the plant would employ. It also asked for feasibility studies and information about the number of jobs the project would create, the estimated number to be filled by Kuwaitis and the amount of funds to be spent on the project.