Saudi Arabia's National Industrialisation Co (Tasnee) said commercial production at a planned ilmenite smelting plant has been delayed until the second half of next year, according to a bourse filing on Thursday.

The delays in planned production are due to changes required to resolve technical issues and problems which have delayed the trial period of the first and second furnaces, the company said in the filing.

Tasnee said it would be difficult to determine the financial impact of the delays at the plant, which is located at Jazan Economic City in the southwest of the kingdom, and it would announce any further developments at the project in due course.

Tasnee owns a 50 per cent stake in the project, while the rest is held by titanium dioxide firm Cristal, which is 79 per cent owned by Tasnee. - Reuters