Bahrain’s state-owned petrochemical company GPIC (Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company) has reportedly awarded U.S. engineering firm Fluor Corporation a FEED (Front-End Engineering Design) contract for a new aromatics production facility. The announcement was reportedly made officially by Fluor on July 21. The new facility is planned to produce approximately 1.2 million tons per year of paraxylene (PX) and approximately 500,000 tons per year of benzene.
The contract reportedly expands GPIC’s existing complex in Sitra, Bahrain. GPIC currently produces ammonia, urea, and methanol, and this project reportedly adds a new aromatics production line. Fluor stated it will proceed with the design using commercially proven process technology, though specific technology or licensor names were not disclosed in the announcement. FEED is the early design phase that defines facility scale, process flow, and budget before actual construction, typically followed by an EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) award.