Fluor completes Dow-PIC olefins project in Shuaiba, Kuwait, involving construction of 850,000 tons/year ethane cracker, expansion of additional 225,000 tons/year PE facility

Liling Tan

IRVING, Texas , August 27, 2009 (press release) – Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) announced today that the company completed the multi-billion-dollar Olefins II Project for a joint venture of Dow Chemical Company, Kuwait’s Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), Bubyan Petrochemical and Qurain Petrochemical Industries in Shuaiba, Kuwait, approximately 25 miles south of Kuwait City.

Fluor began work on the project in July 2004 by providing overall management consultancy and front-end engineering and design (FEED) work for utilities and infrastructure. The Olefins II Project was completed in June 2009 with a safety record that achieved 42 million safe hours without a lost-time incident.

“The completion of this project is a significant milestone for our client and for Fluor, as this was a model of true teamwork throughout,” said Peter Oosterveer, Fluor’s president of Energy & Chemicals. “The sheer size and scope along with the outstanding safety record makes this a true hallmark project.”

In addition to the overall management consultancy and front-end engineering and design (FEED) work for utilities and infrastructure, Fluor was also awarded the FEED and engineering, procurement and construction management for the sea water cooling towers, polyethylene expansion, expansion of existing utilities and infrastructure, and new utilities and infrastructure shared with aromatics. During the five-year project, Fluor introduced innovative solutions to meet many of the unique challenges including assisting our client in the development of a closed circuit seawater cooling system including onsite hyperbolic cooling towers. Other notable accomplishments on the Olefins II Project included overseeing engineering and construction of:

* An 850,000-tons-per-year ethane cracker;
* A 600,000-tons-per-year ethylene glycol unit;
* A 450,000-tons-per-year ethyl benzene/styrene monomer unit; and
* A debottleneck expansion of an additional 225,000 tons per year of polyethylene capacity at the existing complex.

In 1998, Fluor completed one of the world’s largest petrochemical plants at the Shuaiba location in Kuwait. In 2005 after completion of FEED work, Fluor was again chosen to expand the plant and build a new facility alongside the existing one while integrating the two facilities into a single complex. The Olefins II Project doubled the capacity of the existing complex.

This complex project was executed from Fluor’s offices in Haarlem, The Netherlands; Manila, Philippines; Kuwait and Abu Dhabi. At the peak of construction, field personnel going through the site gate totaled nearly 12,000 and Fluor utilized several local contractors and suppliers to help complete the project.

About Fluor Corporation

Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) designs, builds and maintains many of the world's most challenging and complex projects. Through its global network of offices on six continents, the company provides comprehensive capabilities and world-class expertise in the fields of engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance and project management. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Fluor is a FORTUNE 200 company and had revenues of $22.3 billion in 2008. For more information visit www.fluor.com.

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