Alexander Petrov, a board member of Sibur, said the company might tap Russia’s National Wealth Fund to help finance its project to build a gas chemical complex in Russia’s Far East. Russia’s largest petrochemicals producer scaled up the planned Amur Gas Chemical Complex and increased the investment estimates from $8 billion to $10-$11 billion. Chinese state refiner Sinopec will hold a 40% stake in the project which is expected to be completed by 2024.
According to Petrov, the government and regulators will determine whether Sibur will be granted access to use the fund. Russia’s National Wealth Fund held $174 billion by July 1. It previously provided $1.75 billion to help finance Sibur’s petrochemical project in western Siberia.
Sibur reported a RUB4.5 billion ($61 million) loss in the first half of 2020, mostly due to the rouble depreciation and an 11.6% decrease in revenues caused by lower prices for most of its products. Its adjusted net profit for the period was RUB37.9 billion ($52 million), falling from RUB49.3 billion in the same period last year.
