Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden) said preliminary work on a petrochemical project in Jubail with South Korea's Daelim Industrial Co will cost about $41 million.

In end-December, both firms signed a deal to launch the Jubail project, a petrochemical joint venture with Sahara Petrochemicals Co.

"This project is expected to cost 154 million riyals ($41 million) to cover the costs for the first nine months," Maaden said in the statement on the Saudi bourse website on Sunday.

The joint venture, expected to have a capacity of 250,000 tonnes per year (tpy) of caustic soda and 300,000 tpy of ethylene dichloride, is due to be completed in the third quarter of 2012, the firm said.

Caustic soda is a feedstock used for the refining of bauxite to alumina. - Reuters