UAE - Petrochemicals & Other Industries.

The chemical sector in Dubai started off with a small acetylene and calcium carbide plant at Jebel Ali in 1985. Since then Jebel Ali has become the centre for Dubai's chemical and petrochemical industries. Now plants at the free zone also produce, polymer resins, liquid industrial chemicals, polystyrene, etc.

The biggest venture is a 500,000 t/y MTBE complex which came on stream in May 1995. This is a JV of Dubai Gas Co. (Dugas) and Scimitar Oils of Canada. Its output is exported to North America under term contracts.

A 10,000 b/d plant built by Jotun Polymer produces unsaturated polyester resin. On stream since February 1995, the plant is said to be the first outside Europe for the Norwegian company.

A plant producing 600 tons/month of polystyrene sheets and 300 t/m of polypropylene sheets was built by Middle East Packaging, with an Indian businessman behind the project. This is located next to an existing plant of the company which produces polystyrene cups and containers for juices and dairy products. This plant's capacity has also been expanded.

The first phase of a liquid industrial chemical storage facility was completed in the second half of 1995 by All Industrial Chemicals Group Ltd. of Canada. Eventually storage capacity is to reach 5,800 tons.

Chemstore, set up in September 2001, is a 50-50 JV of ENOC and Modern Freight Co. for the storage of third-party hazardous chemicals. It has a storage facility at Jebel Ali completed in March 2002.

A regional sales and distribution centre called Petrochem Middle East FZE was established in 1995 by a JV of Petrochem UK and Indian businessman Yogesh Mehta. It markets a range of petrochemical solvents, such as alcohols, keytones, ethanol amines, esters, monomers, inorganic powders, glycol ethers, hydrocarbons and specialty chemicals used in a range of industries. Markets range from the GCC to Iran, India and Central Asia.

The acetylene and calcium carbide plant which started up at Jebel Ali in 1985 is a JV of SZP Zavarivac of former Yugoslavia and Issa Oman Bin Haydar General Trading Est.

A plant at Jebel Ali on stream since 1990 produces 6,000 t/y of water-soluble compound fertilisers (Dubai's first fertiliser venture). It was built by Union Kemira Co., a JV of the UAE's Union Agricultural Co. and the Finnish chemical and fertiliser group Kemira. A fertiliser plant dismantled in Sri Lanka is being relocated and upgraded at Jebel Ali for a JV of Southern Petrochemical Industries Corp. (SPIC) of India holding 85% and a partnership of the local Emirates Trading Agency and Detroit-based MCN Investment Co. holding 15% The plant will have the capacity to produce 396,000 t/y of urea and 226,000 t/y of ammonia.

An aromatics plant producing benzene, toluene and xylene for export came on stream at end-1990. It was built for Dubai Chemical Co. at $60m. A 10,000 t/y latex plant operated by Union Carbide started up at end-1991. There have been proposals for a phosphoric acid plant to be built by an Indian firm.

Dubai Aluminium Co. (Dubal), one of the most successful ventures in Jebel Ali, is one of the top aluminium companies in the world. With a 536,000 t/y capacity, Dubal is expanding to 886,000 t/y by 2005/06. It is a JV of the Dubai government (80%), Southwire Corp. of the US (7.5%), Nissho Iwai (7.5%) and local businessmen (5%). Dubal's smelter first came on stream with a 130,000 t/y capacity in 1980.

Dubai Cables Co. (Ducab), set up in 1979, now owned 50-50 by the Dubai government and Abu Dhabi's General Industry Corp. (GIC), is one of the biggest and most profitable producers of medium voltage cables. Now it is being expanded for another range of products (see background & the other emirates in Vol. 54).