A unit of Exxon Mobil Corp. said Wednesday it had signed a joint development agreement with Qatar Petroleum for a large-scale petrochemical complex in Qatar to meet growing demand in Asian markets.

Qatar sits atop the world’s largest natural gas field, North Field. Currently Exxon and Qatar are working jointly to develop gas projects in the property.

The proposed plant will draw from Qatar’s North Field to make products that will “serve global petrochemical demand, with a particular focus on the growing Asia markets,” the companies said in a statement.

The plant will include a 1.6 million-tons-per-year “steam cracker,” two 650 kilotons-per-year (KTA) polyethylene plants and a 700 KTA ethylene glycol plant.

Steam cracking is a process by which complex chemical compounds are broken down into simpler molecules, which are used to make products in the chemical and energy sectors.

ExxonMobil Chemical Qatar Ltd. said the plant will be located in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar and the startup is estimated in late 2015. The project has been delayed from an original 2012 start date, which the companies set in 2006 when they agreed to study the proposed $3 billion complex.

In its most recent statement Wednesday, the company did not provide updated financial details of the project.

Shares of Exxon rose 68 cents to $70.10 in afternoon trading.