Opinion Logistics Act now to protect your supply chain against severe weather It would be foolish not to give serious scrutiny to your business September 4, 2023
Industry UAE company buys 30% stake in Egyptian tobacco maker The UAE’s Global Investments Holding has acquired a 30 percent stake in Eastern Company, Egypt’s largest tobacco producer, for $625 million. The sale is part of the Egyptian government’s programme of privatising state-owned assets. Chemical Industries Holding Company, which held 50.95 percent of Eastern’s shares, last month announced that it had received offers from foreign […] September 4, 2023
Analysis Leisure & Hospitality Gulf events turning to inflatable domes A Slovenian leader in the manufacture of high-tech air domes is seeking expansion across the Gulf after capturing deals in Saudi Arabia. DBS Engineering has agreements with the Ministry of Investment, Alwaseel Sport City, Filling & Packing Materials Co (Fipco) and Zamil Industrial. The company said it will soon complete its second project in Qassim […] September 4, 2023
Industry Sabic to sell steel subsidiary to PIF for $3.3bn Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) has signed an agreement to sell its 100 percent stake in its steel manufacturing subsidiary to the Public Investment Fund (PIF) for SAR12.5 billion ($3.33 billion). The final sale price for Saudi Iron & Steel Company (Hadeed) will be determined only on the deal closure date, which is expected to […] September 3, 2023
Manufacturing Telsa to export China-made Model 3 sedan to Middle East Tesla showed off its restyled, China-made Model 3 sedan for the first time to the public at a trade fair in Beijing, after launching it a day before in several countries. The US automaker displayed a flame red version of the car – marking the first change to its mass-market car line-up since it launched […] September 3, 2023
Renewable Energy Saudi company invests in US battery maker Pure Lithium Saudi Arabian investment company Energy Capital Group has announced a collaboration with US tech startup Pure Lithium to develop renewable batteries. The batteries will use lithium extracted from oilfield brines, giving a further boost to Saudi Arabia’s plans to dominate in green industries. Based in Riyadh, Energy Capital Group did not disclose how much it […] September 1, 2023
Manufacturing Emirates Global Aluminium H1 profit falls 66% to $533m Net profit at Emirates Global Aluminium, the UAE’s largest non-oil industrial company and one of the world’s largest aluminium producers, tumbled 66 percent to AED2 billion ($533 million) in the first half of 2023. This compared to AED5.9 billion ($1.6 bllion) in the first half of 2022. Revenue declined 19.12 percent year on year to […] August 31, 2023
Energy Oman’s $3.4bn green steel plant to be ready by 2026 A green steel plant project planned for Oman is scheduled for completion in 2026 and aims to position the sultanate as a production trailblazer. Vulcan Green Steel, a project by India-based Jindal Steel Group in the special economic zone at Duqm (Sezad) will establish a six million metric tonnes per annum green hydrogen-ready steel plant. […] August 30, 2023
Manufacturing Tunisia to scale up phosphate production Tunisia’s state-owned phosphate company is getting ready to ramp up production as part of its TD235 million ($76 million) investment programme. Next month the Gafsa Phosphate Company (CPG) will receive the first batch of machinery, including equipment to increase its capacity to transport raw phosphate and extract commercial phosphate. It will also take delivery of […] August 28, 2023
Industry Salalah Free Zone in Oman attracts $1.9bn investment Oman’s Salalah Free Zone, a subsidiary of Asyad Group, has secured investment worth OMR727 million ($1.9 billion) during the first half of 2023. Five new land lease agreements were signed during the period, taking the total number of deals to 127 and valued at OMR4.5 billion, the state-run Oman News Agency reported. The new agreements […] August 28, 2023
Exclusive Energy Dow Chemical oils wheels for Saudi Arabia expansion The Dow Chemical Company has put Saudi Arabia at the heart of its Middle East expansion strategy, its new regional president told AGBI. The multinational corporation, which makes chemicals used in everything from oil and plastics to paints and building materials, also wants to capitalise on higher gas demand in the region. Moosa Al Moosa, […] August 27, 2023
Banking & Finance 3D printer Immensa looks to fund global expansion Immensa, a company focused on 3D printing and digital warehousing, is preparing to close a second funding round. Founder and CEO Fahmi Al Shawwa said the funding will be used to fuel international expansion of the company, which uses data and technology to streamline warehouse operations. The company is based in Dubai, but opened a […] August 25, 2023
Analysis Trade Joramco flies high as UAE and Jordan deepen industrial ties Commercial aircraft maintenance operator Joramco is establishing a new Boeing Converted Freighter production line in the Jordanian capital of Amman. The company, which is part of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, is flying the flag for trade relations between the UAE and Jordan as they expand their joint industrial ambitions. Joramco said the new venture will support […] August 24, 2023
Manufacturing Foreign investors seek 15% of Egypt’s tobacco company Egypt has received several offers from foreign investors to buy up to 15.3 percent of the shares of state-controlled Eastern Co, the country’s main tobacco products maker, the company said in a disclosure to the stock exchange on Tuesday. If it goes through, the sale would give impetus to Egypt’s floundering privatisation programme and reduce […] August 23, 2023
Industry Petrochemicals producer in $40m blow A major Saudi Arabian petrochemicals company has announced a temporary shutdown at some of its plants which is likely to cost it SAR150 million ($40 million). Yanbu National Petrochemical Company (Yansab) said a “technical upset” forced the shutdown on August 14 and is likely to continue into early September. “The work is in progress to […] August 22, 2023
Analysis Oil & Gas Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi bet on crude-to-chemicals Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi’s state-run oil companies both want to expand their chemicals production capacity in a strategic shift that will have huge implications for a petrochemicals industry already suffering from its lowest margins in two decades. Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc) together provide around almost half of Opec’s crude […] August 18, 2023
Analysis Manufacturing Abu Dhabi’s industrial ambitions begin to bear fruit Abu Dhabi has registered a 63 percent jump in the number of industrial licences issued during the first half of 2023 as the emirate makes progress on plans to double the size of the sector by 2031. In the first full year since the launch of the Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy, nearly AED15.4 billion ($4.2 […] August 17, 2023
Industry Shipbuilder ADSB trains sights on exports as profit rises Abu Dhabi Ship Building has reported net profit of AED21 million ($5.7 million) for the first half of 2023 – more than its profit figure for the whole of last year. The listed shipbuilder’s order book stands at more than AED8 billion, it said in a filing to Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange on Monday. CEO […] August 15, 2023
Industry Saudi industrial production drops as inflation cools Saudi Arabia’s headline inflation rate dropped for the second month in succession to 2.3 percent in July from 2.7 percent in June, the slowest outturn since the middle of last year. The main drivers of price increases throughout the month were housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, which increased by 8.6 percent year on […] August 15, 2023
Opinion Manufacturing Global EV manufacturers rev up for Gulf race There is a way to go before electric vehicles overtake fossil fuel cars August 14, 2023
Industry Rising funding costs hit Ma’aden’s Q2 earnings by 91% The net profit of Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Ma’aden) fell 91 percent in the second quarter of 2023, hit by rising funding costs and falling sales prices. The mining major reported a profit of SAR350.94 million ($93.53 million) in the quarter to June 2023, compared to SAR4.02 billion in the same period last year, according […] August 14, 2023
Industry Alba earnings fall 84% during global economic woes Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) reported a profit of BD29.9 million ($79.5 million) for the second quarter of 2023, a drop of 83.6 percent year on year, as global economic challenges weighed down its earnings. Revenue fell 25.6 percent to BD387 million in the quarter from BD520.4 million a year earlier. Production reached 405,628 metric tonnes, an […] August 10, 2023
