Alujain’s NATPET says fabric plant is fully operational; eyes plastic plant launch in 2016

National Petrochemical Industrial Co. (NATPET) said its Bonar plant, which produces nonwoven fabrics, has been in full swing since the beginning of the year.

NATPET, which is 57.4 percent-owned by Saudi Arabian Alujain, also expects operations at its plastic project to start by mid-2016.

The second phase of the Bonar project should be implemented in 2018. A second non-woven fabric line with a capacity of 9,600 tons per year will be added.

Bonar, which is a joint venture between NATPET and the United Kingdom’s Low & Bonar, converts polypropylene into fabrics to produce geotextiles, used in civil engineering and infrastructure projects.

The plant operates with a capacity nearing 17,300 tons of basic fabrics and 9,600 tons of non-woven fabrics.

NATPET said it is also preparing the site of the NATPET-Schulman engineering plastic compounds project. The company might secure a SAR 100 million loan from the Saudi Fund for Development in the first quarter of the year.

The company, located in Saudi’s Yanbu industrial city, reported a 49 percent growth in net profit to SAR 310 million in 2014. The rise was sparked by a 10 percent increase year-on-year in sales to 367,000 tons, from 335,000 tons a year earlier.