Saudi Arabia's Kayan Petrochemical Company on Saturday reported a fourth-quarter net loss of 0.37 million Saudi riyals ($98,660), down from an 8.36 million riyals loss in the same period a year earlier.

Kayan, a unit of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), is developing a mega complex located in Saudi's ubail and expects to start operations in the second half of 2010.

Kayan attributed the loss to the fact that the plant is still in the non-operational stage. The company made a 12-month loss of 16.84 million riyals for 2009, compared with a net profit of 171.6 million riyals in 2008, it said in a statement on the Saudi bourse website.

The complex will have an annual production capacity of 6 million tonnes of petrochemicals including ethylene, propylene and ethylene glycol from 16 plants.-Reuters