Gulf Cryo, a leading manufacturer of industrial, medical and speciality gases in the Middle East, is set to construct a 30,000 sq m air separation plant in Abu Dhabi.

Situated on Greenfield land in the UAE capital, the plant will be Gulf Cryo’s largest site in the country which will manufacture liquid oxygen, liquid nitrogen and liquid argon.

The work on the plant will begin in February next year and is expected to be completed by May 2013.

In the first phase, Gulf Cryo will commission and erect a technology advanced Air Separation Unit (ASU) with remote operation.

In the second phase, hydrogen and acetylene gases production will be introduced, as well as various gas mixing and filling facilities.

The fully automated ASU is being supplied by the Italian company SIAD Macchine Impianti.

'The new AFPLN3000 unit will use the most advanced air separation cryogenic technology for the production of more than 200 mtpd of high purity gases,' said Andrea Turetta, plant sales manager at SIAD Macchine Impianti said.

'We are delighted to be working with Gulf Cryo in Abu Dhabi, this will be the group’s first SIAD ASU to be commissioned,' he stated.

SIAD Macchine Impianti will also provide installation support activities on site including pre-commissioning, commissioning and start-up using its own skilled technicians, said the official.

Gulf Cryo’s unit operators will follow a specific training programme to manage the process, operation and maintenance of the air separation plant, he added.

Commenting on the launch, Gulf Cryo CEO Naji Skaf said the company was committed to the UAE in terms of prolonged investment, strategic growth and innovation.

“In response to increasing demand for industrial gases from the oil and gas, steel and heavy fabrication sectors, the construction of our largest industrial gas production plant in the country will strengthen our position in the market to meet the needs of customers across a variety of sectors,” he noted.

Gulf Cryo is a closed shareholding company operating in the industrial gas field in the Middle East, founded as the Kuwait Oxygen Company in 1953.

Today Gulf Cryo comprises 13 affiliated companies and is a leading manufacturer and distributor of industrial, medical, food and speciality gases in the region.-TradeArabia News Service