Aramco-Dow joint venture likely to tap debt market

The Sadara chemical joint venture being built by Saudi Arabian Oil Co and Dow Chemical Co may tap debt markets to help finance the project.The venture will explore all sources of funding as "it's a big project that needs a lot of debt", said Khalid Al Falih, chief executive of the state oil company also known as Saudi Aramco. The project will examine bond and sukuk markets.Financing costs will be low because the two companies have a good reputation and "we will make sure it will stay low", Al Falih said at a ceremony in Dhahran yesterday.The plant will make three million tonnes of chemical products a year, generating about $10 billion (Dh36.7 billion) worth of sales per annum, within a few years, he said in a speech.The multi-billion dollar joint venture will be the largest in Saudi Arabia and will make chemical products new to the Middle East.Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris said the project will create 14,000 new jobs in Saudi Arabia, 4,000 of which are from direct employment and the rest indirectly.