Jacobs Engineering Group said it has clinched a major contract from Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Company to develop a process design package (PDP) and front end engineering design (Feed) package for its upcoming plant in the Kingdom.

Kayan is an affiliate of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), one of the world's top petrochemical companies.

As per the contract, Jacobs will develop the PDP and Feed design packages for the build of an ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) plant in the industrial city of Jubail.

The UHMWPE is used in many industrial applications including batteries and industrial fibers, said a statement from Jacobs.

According to Jacobs, the plant will have a production capacity of 35,000 tonnes per year using ethylene sourced from Kayan's existing olefins plant and is of significant strategic importance as Sabic is to use its own technology.

Headquartered in Riyadh, Sabic is a market leader in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.

The contract will be executed from Jacobs' Winnersh, UK and Al-Khobar, Saudi offices, the company said in its statement. However, it did not disclose the value of the contract.

In his comments, Jacobs Group VP Bob Irvin said, 'We take this contract win as a statement of our client's confidence in our ability to deliver strategic projects of this nature and commencement of a long-term relationship with Sabic that will drive mutual benefits to our businesses and build upon our presence and future capability in Saudi.'

Jacobs is one of the world's largest and most diverse providers of technical, professional and construction services.-TradeArabia News Service