Work will commence on the 1.4 billion Saudi riyals ($373.07 million) dry gas-based bio-protein production project in Jubail Industrial City II in the second half of 2026, according to Saudi Industrial Investment Group (SIIG).

The project is expected to be completed in the second half of 2027, with pilot production commencing in the same period for six months.

Commercial production is likely to begin in the first half of 2028, SIIG said in a statement to the Saudi stock exchange.

Contracts for the facility, which will have an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes of single-cell protein, will be awarded to local and foreign contractors and suppliers.

SIIG owns 80 percent of the project, while London-based Unibio will hold the remaining 20 percent.  SIIG currently owns 24 percent of Unibio.

The partners have obtained an allocation of dry gas from the Saudi Ministry of Energy as feedstock for the project.

The project will be funded using SIIG’s internal resources, as well as through commercial and government financial institutions, the statement said.

Last week, SIIG had announced the signing of a framework agreement, under the patronage of the Ministry of Energy, with the Private Sector Partnership Programme (Shareek) and Ministry of Investment to join Shareek’s enablement programme and establish the Kingdom’s first bio-protein production facility. 

Launched in 2021, the Shareek programme provides tailored support to eligible companies to accelerate planned projects and identify new opportunities with the goal of unlocking SAR 5 trillion in domestic private sector investments by 2030.

(Editing by Anoop Menon) (anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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