Munich, 24th November 2011 -  Bahrain's Labour Fund, Tamkeen, has signed an agreement with German chemicals giant, BASF, to provide support to the new BASF operation in the Kingdom, which will be its largest plant in the Middle East on completion.   The contract was finalised and signed in Munich, at an Economic Development Board's business development roadshow event in Germany.

Tamkeen will work with BASF to support the employment and training of Bahrainis for the new operation based at the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP).   The new plant will demand a range of skills, including engineers/technician for production, maintenance and quality control as well as administrative support services.

At the signing ceremony, EDB Chief Executive, Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa Al-Khalifa said:  "The establishment of BASF's largest investment in the Middle East in Bahrain serves to illustrate the ongoing success of Bahrain's programme of economic diversification.  BASF recognised the value of basing operations in the Kingdom, including the duty free access to the GCC region and the United States as well as access to a skilled workforce. "

"However, our work does not stop at the point a company agrees to locate in Bahrain.  Through Tamkeen and the EDB, BASF will be given as much support as it requires to not only establish, but grow its business in Bahrain underlying the Kingdom's status as the gateway to the Gulf's trillion dollar market."

Discussing the details of the agreement, Tamkeen CEO, Mahmood Al Kooheji said:  "BASF's operation will be a significant addition to Bahrain economic make-up as a research and development intensive, hi-tech industry.  We can expect it to grow and become an anchor for more companies and jobs in the future. It is vital that it receives support from Tamkeen at the outset to help it develop and train Bahrainis to meet the unique skills requirements demanded by the company and the wider sector as this becomes a larger part of the Bahrain economy."

The plant will manufacture a range of customer specific antioxidant blends (CSB).  It will be one of the largest of its kind in the world with an annual capacity of 16,000 metric tons and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2012.

The grant and related support from Tamkeen falls under the organisation's foreign investment support programme.  It seeks to maximise the development impact from the establishment of new businesses and operations in the Kingdom on the Bahrain economy.

For more information, please visit www.bahrainedb.com,

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Editors Notes

About The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB)

The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) is a dynamic public agency with an overall responsibility for formulating and overseeing the economic development strategy of Bahrain, and for creating the right climate to attract direct investment into the Kingdom.

The role of the Bahrain EDB is to provide leadership by uniting all of the Kingdom's shareholders through a unified vision, and to develop key strategies for growth. The Bahrain EDB also acts as a facilitator, helping all of Bahrain's stakeholders to understand and adopt the changes necessary for progress. In addition, the Bahrain EDB provides sound project management to ensure that all agreed reform initiatives are implemented in an effective and timely manner.

The Bahrain EDB is also responsible for attracting inward investment into Bahrain, and is focusing on six target economic sectors in which the Kingdom offers significant strengths. These are financial services, downstream industries, tourism, business services, logistics, and education and training.

For more information on the Bahrain EDB visit www.bahrainedb.com; for information about Bahrain visit www.bahrain.com

About Tamkeen

Tamkeen is a semi-autonomous, independent authority which formulates strategic and operational plans to enhance the overall prosperity of Bahrain by investing in Bahraini employability, job creation, and social support. Tamkeen's main objectives are to support Bahrainis to become the employees of choice, and to support high quality private sector job creation and helping the private sector cope with the impact of labour market reform.

For more information visit www.tamkeen.bh, or contact Tamkeen at tel: 17383327 / 17383326, or at info@tamkeen.bh.

About BASF

BASF is the world's leading chemical company: Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and agricultural products to oil and gas. As a reliable partner BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of about €63.9 billion in 2010 and had approximately 109,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com or in its Social Media Newsroom at newsroom.basf.com.

Jenan Al Maskati, Bahrain Economic Development Board
Tel: +973 17 589 930
Email: internationalmedia@bahrainedb.com   

© Press Release 2011