Kuwait's Qurain Petrochemical Industries Company said on Tuesday it has established a company which will build two petrochemical plants at the cost of $700 million.

Qurain said in a statement it owned 90 per cent of the new venture called United Petrochemical Company, while United Industries Co owned the rest. It said the plants will be the country's first for producing purified terephthalic acid (PTA), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

The materials will be mainly used in making plastic bottles and food packaging, the statement said.

Qurain did not say when the plants were expected to built, but it said UPC 'has received all required licences.'

Opec member Kuwait is the world's fourth-largest oil exporter.-Reuters