United Iron & Steel (UIS), a joint venture between UAE-based Abdul Jalil Group and Safid Group, a leading manufacturer of indoor climate solutions based in Saudi Arabia, has announced plans to build a new galvanised steel production plant in Abu Dhabi, UAE, at an investment of Dh1 billion ($272 million).

A leading player in the region, UIS said the new plant will come up on a 126,000-sq-m area in the ICAD (Industrial City Abu Dhabi) 3.

The construction work will be completed in two phases, said Al Diyar General Contracting Company of UAE, which has been signed up as the main civil contractor for the project. The civil works will start on April 30.

UIS said it aims to produce up to 250,000 tonnes of galvanised steel per year for customers in the Middle East, Europe and Africa at its new plant by the fourth quarter of 2016.

Zamil Steel has been contracted to provide the steel structure for the factory, while Danieli of Italy will supply the majority of the manufacturing equipment to the plant, said the company in a statement.

On the new plant, UIS chairman Sheikh Mohammed Al Rahbani said the demand for galvanised steel in the GCC region had grown significantly over the last few years.

"Once the production starts at our plant, we expect over 50 per cent of the factory's output to be taken up by customers in the region," he stated.
 
"The rest of production will be taken up by clients in Europe and Africa," he added.

According to him, the regional demand growth has been driven by construction and government infrastructure investment, with galvanised steel products being used for a wide range of applications including roofing, cladding and air-conditioning ducting.

Al Rahbani said the Industrial City is a perfect location for the plant, with excellent infrastructure, competitive energy costs and a number of other benefits that come from the industrial cluster model.

Souheil Hatoum, the general manager, said the regional demand for rolled and coated steel products was set to double over the next five years.

"Currently over 50 per cent of the GCC's annual demand for galvanised steel products is imported so we see that we are filling a major gap in the regional market. But further afield, global demand will grow annually between two to four per cent so we also expect strong demand from customers in Europe and Africa," he added.-TradeArabia News Service