CONVENT — SABIC and an affiliate of Exxon Mobil Corporation are considering the potential 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.

 “This project, if developed in St. James Parish, will benefit our residents and our local economy by providing several hundred jobs with an average annual salary of $85,000,” St. James Parish President Timmy Roussel said. “I look forward to working with SABIC and Exxon Mobil as these companies determine where to locate this project.”

 Before making final investment decisions, the companies will conduct necessary 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,” Yousef Abdullah Al-Benyan, SABIC vice chairman and chief executive officer, said. “The proposed venture would capture competitive feedstock and reinforce SABIC’s strong position in the value chain.”

Neil Chapman, president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company, said they 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,” Chapman said.

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