S.Korea Honam Petchem says Qatar JV delayed to 2013

SEOUL, Jan 8 (Reuters) - A top executive at South Korea's Honam Petrochemical Corp (011170.KS) said on Thursday its $2.6 billion joint venture with Qatar Petroleum will be delayed by a year to early 2013 due to the current slump in oil demand.

"The joint project with QP is now on suspension and will be delayed by about a year," Chong Bum-shick, president of the firm, told reporters.

The comment, which was the first official confirmation from Honam, was in line with previous Reuters reports that the project would be postponed to at least 2012. [ID:nL3350892]

"We are reassessing the EPC (Engineering Procurement Construction) cost... we had initially planned this when oil prices were near $150.00 a barrel and that's quite far off from now," Chong said.

Crude oil CLc1 prices plunged to below $40 a barrel in December, down from nearly $150 a barrel in July.

Honam Petrochemical had said it would invest $363 billion won ($275.9 million) for a 30 percent stake in the project at Mesaieed Industrial City.

Qatar Intermediate Industries Holdings Company Ltd, an affiliate of Qatar Petroleum, would hold the remaining 70 percent. ($1=1315.5 Won)

(Reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)