Dubai: Qatar Strands, a company formed by a group of Gulf investors, is building a steel plant in Jebel Ali with an investment of Dh250 million.
It is in the process of installing machines on a 13,000-square-metre factory site purchased recently.
The plant will become operational in the beginning of 2008, said Lorenzo Facchinelli, managing director of Italian firm GCR Eurodraw, which is supplying machinery worth more than Dh100 million to Qatar Strands.
At a capacity of producing 100,000 tonnes of steel wire per year, it will be the biggest facility of its kind in the Gulf, the project's promoters said.
UAE-based private equity firm Evolvence Capital facilitated the project transaction.
"The idea was in development for two years. We were finally able to get a group of Gulf investors together for this venture," Evolvence director Ezzaldeen Al Araj told Gulf News.
Big demand
"There is a big demand for pre-stressed concrete strand in the UAE because of large-scale construction work going on everywhere," Facchinelli said.
Most steel cables being used in the Gulf are imported from China, Malay-sia and countries in Europe.
Demand for steel wires in Arab countries is estimated to be 750,000 tonnes annually with the UAE accounting for about one-third of the market.
Imports of steel wires are growing at 20 per cent per year.
Qatar Strands will target the domestic market for steel wires, which are used with concrete in infrastructure-type projects like bridges.
By Shakir Husain
© Gulf News 2007
