SABIC to market 1.7 mln tons of Sadara products, maintain dividend policy: CEO

Yousef Al-Benyan, Vice Chairman and CEO of SABIC

Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) will market more than 1.7 million tons of Sadara Chemical Co.’s (Sadara) products, the company’s vice chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) Yousef Al-Benyan said in an earnings call today, April 29, 2021.

This move is part of SABIC’s integration strategy with Saudi Aramco.

The ‘Shareek’ program will enable SABIC and other petrochemicals producers in the sector to boost growth opportunities locally and establish their presence globally, Al-Benyan added, noting that SABIC has a clear dividend distribution policy and will maintain that strategy.

There is a balance between dividend distribution and growth opportunities to deliver positive returns to shareholders in the long-term, Al-Benyan concluded.

SABIC said that the sales and marketing rights of approximately 5.4 million metric tons of chemicals and polymer products will be transferred from Saudi Aramco to the company on a phased basis starting 2021, Argaam reported.

The giant petrochemical producer earlier said it will begin marketing Aramco’s allocation of Sadara products, more consistent with Aramco’s equity ownership of the joint venture, beginning July 1, 2021.

Earlier today, SABIC reported net profit after Zakat and tax of SAR 4.86 billion for the first quarter of 2021, against a net loss of SAR 1.05 billion in the year-ago period.