SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corp.) and an affiliate of ExxonMobil Corp. are considering the development of a jointly owned petrochemical complex on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

If developed, the project would be located in Texas or Louisiana near natural gas feedstock and include a world-scale steam cracker and derivative units, the companies said Monday. Before making final investment decisions, the companies said they will conduct studies and work with state and local officials to help identify a potential site with adequate infrastructure access.

“We are focused on geographic diversification to supply new markets,” said SABIC CEO Yousef Abdullah Al-Benyan. “The proposed venture would capture competitive feedstock and reinforce SABIC’s strong position in the value chain.”

Neil Chapman, president of ExxonMobil Chemical Co., said, “We have the capability to design a project with a unique set of attributes that would make it competitive globally. That is vitally important as most of the chemical demand growth in the next several decades is anticipated to come from developing economies.”

ExxonMobil and SABIC have worked together for 35 years in chemical joint ventures in Saudi Arabia.