The UAE-based Al Ghurair Iron & Steel (Agis) has commissioned its second continuous galvanising line (CGL2) as part of its expansion plans, said a top official.

A joint venture between Dubai's Al Ghurair group and Japan's Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation, Agis aims to produce 400,000 tonnes of galvanised steel annually by the year end, up from 200,000 a few months ago, stated Majid Saif Al Ghurair, the chairman of Al Ghurair Iron & Steel while speaking at a press conference.

The move will help increase the product basket with the addition of a skin pass line and the inclusion of thinner sizes (0.20 mm upwards). This will take the annual turnover of the company to Dh1.5 billion ($408 million), stated Al Ghurair addressing the gathering at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi.

Agis will now be able to supply galvanised coils measuring from 0.20 mm to 2.50 mm which will take care of the requirements of the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) sector besides the pre-engineered steel buildings, pre-painted galvanised iron, electrical panels, white goods and construction industries in the Mena region.

This capacity addition will also enable the UAE steel company to meet the entire requirements of the UAE market through local production, remarked CEO Abu Bucker Husain at the press conference.

According to Husain, the second galvanising line has a thickness range of 0.20 to 1.20 mm, width range of 900 to 1250 mm and zinc coating up to 350 gm per sq m.

The installed capacity at Agis is now 400,000 tonnes per annum, making it one of the largest producers of galvanised steel in the region, he added.-TradeArabia News Service