SABIC announces its 2023 financial results

•    Full year 2023 revenue totaled SAR 141.54 billion, while total net income was SAR -2.77 billion.
•    SABIC CEO, “Despite the headwinds faced by the chemical industry in 2023, we moved forward with resilience“.

SABIC, a global leader in diversified chemicals, announced its financial results for full year 2023, with total revenue of SAR 141.54 billion [$37.74 billion] reflecting a 23% decline in comparison to 2022.

Net income from continuing operations in 2023 totaled SAR 1.30 billion [$0.35 billion], excluding non-recurring accounting provisions, despite the headwinds to the petrochemical industry and the low prices during the year 2023.

SABIC’s sale of 100% of it’s shares in Hadeed, reflected in the non-recurring provisions, is part of the company's ongoing efforts to maintain its competitiveness and focus on its strategic portfolio, which will have a positive impact on securing immediate cash to boost SABIC's chemical growth.

The company reported a total net income of SAR -2.77 billion [$-0.74 billion] versus a net income of SAR 16.53 billion [$4.41 billion] achieved over the course of 2022, mainly due to net non-cash losses from non-continuing operations of SAR 4.08 billion resulting from the fair value of Hadeed’s net assets as well as Hadeed's performance during the current year. 

SABIC has made a positive final investment decision for the SABIC Fujian Petrochemical Complex – a 51:49 JV between SABIC, as the majority partner, and Fujian Fuhua Gulei Petrochemicals Co. Ltd. This $6.4 billion investment is another centerpiece of SABIC’s investment footprint in China and by far the largest foreign investment in Fujian. The complex will consist of a mixed-feed cracker, with an expected annual ethylene capacity up to 1.8 million tons, and a series of world-class downstream facilities, including ethylene glycols, polyethylene, polypropylene, and several other units. It incorporates nine of SABIC’s leading technologies. The construction is scheduled to be completed by the second half of 2026.

Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh, SABIC CEO, said, “Despite the headwinds faced by the chemical industry and the supply chains globally in 2023, we moved forward with resilience. We are now focusing on optimizing expenses and capitalizing on value-creation opportunities with a special emphasis on providing innovative solutions to our customers around the world. In spite of the challenging economic situation, SABIC maintained its petrochemicals market share globally, as the impact on sales was slight – 2% less than the previous year.”

The company continues to work collaboratively with key players in the industry. A number of key developments last year support this goal. They include the recent updates of the joint project between SABIC, BASF, and Linde to build the world’s first electrically heated cracker furnaces, which hit an important milestone recently with the installation of the last transformers for the demonstration plant. This technology can potentially significantly reduce CO2 emissions compared to conventional technologies.  
     
Throughout 2023, SABIC also maintained its commitment to building a circular economy. For example, the Company joined Saudi Aramco and TotalEnergies to produce the Middle East and North Africa region’s first ISCC+ certified polymers made from chemically recycled plastic waste. SABIC also collaborated again with Microsoft Corporation to develop Microsoft’s first device-docking enclosures composed of polycarbonate derived from recycled ocean-bound plastic.

The Company also won multiple Edison and R&D 100 awards in 2023 for its innovative solutions and earned the Compliance Leader Verification™ for 2024 and 2025 from Ethisphere, a leading certifier of corporate ethics.

SABIC took a major step in 2023 in preparation for the realization of its vision of being the preferred world leader in chemicals. It maintained its status as the second most valuable global brand in the chemical industry value.