A US$200 million factory for specialised catalysts used in oil refining is due to be built in Abu Dhabi as the emirate pushes further down the hydrocarbon value chain.
Scheduled to begin construction at Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad) this year, the plant will make specialised chemical compounds used to split crude into diesel, polymers and other products.
The first plant for fluid catalytic cracking catalysts in the Middle East - most in the relatively small $2.5 billion global market are based in Europe or North America - it follows the movement of refining and oil consumption from West to East.
"Global capacity was getting tight and the question is do you invest in existing sites or do you invest in other regions?" asked Shawn Abrams, the president of Grace Catalysts Technologies, a Maryland-based company that holds a 70 per cent stake in the joint venture. "Our decision was to invest where the growth was."
Its partner, the UAE agricultural company Al Dahra, will focus on the logistics of procuring raw materials such as sodium silicate and aluminium sulfate and moving the finished catalysts to consumers in Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Although officials from Takreer, the refining subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, were present at a ceremony yesterday at the Emirates Palace hotel to mark the joint venture, Takreer has not yet confirmed any future orders for catalysts from the new plant.
Takreer is scheduled to double its refining power by the start of next year with an extra 417,000 barrels per day (bpd) of capacity at its Ruwais site. The $10bn expansion, which will allow the UAE to meet all of its domestic demand for products such as petrol and diesel, will coincide with the launch of the catalyst logistics hub at Kizad.
"There will be one key end user that we'll want to supply," said Mr Abrams. "They have to make their decisions."
Grace plans to complete engineering for the factory, which is scheduled to come online at the end of 2015, later this month and to launch a tender after that for construction to kick off before the end of the year. The facility joins a number of other future Kizad tenants ranging from silicon smelters to construction board manufacturers.
Mr Abrams said the plant will create 200 jobs, and Al Dahra is already training UAE nationals for some roles.
ayee@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Soldier F
“I was in complete disgust at the fact that only one person was to be charged for Bloody Sunday.
“Somebody later said to me, 'you just watch - they'll drop the charge against him'. And sure enough, the charges against Soldier F would go on to be dropped.
“It's pretty hard to think that 50 years on, the State is still covering up for what happened on Bloody Sunday.”
Jimmy Duddy, nephew of John Johnson
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
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On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Results
Stage seven
1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates, in 3:20:24
2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers, at 1s
3. Pello Bilbao (ESP) Bahrain-Victorious, at 5s
General Classification
1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates, in 25:38:16
2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers, at 22s
3. Pello Bilbao (ESP) Bahrain-Victorious, at 48s
The Byblos iftar in numbers
29 or 30 days – the number of iftar services held during the holy month
50 staff members required to prepare an iftar
200 to 350 the number of people served iftar nightly
160 litres of the traditional Ramadan drink, jalab, is served in total
500 litres of soup is served during the holy month
200 kilograms of meat is used for various dishes
350 kilograms of onion is used in dishes
5 minutes – the average time that staff have to eat
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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- Golden circle - Dh995
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- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
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What is double taxation?
- Americans living abroad file taxes with the Internal Revenue Service, which can cost hundreds of dollars to complete even though about 60 per cent do not owe taxes, according to the Taxpayer Advocate Service
- Those obligations apply to millions of Americans residing overseas – estimates range from 3.9 million to 5.5 million – including so-called "accidental Americans" who are unaware they hold dual citizenship
- The double taxation policy has been a contentious issue for decades, with many overseas Americans feeling that it punishes them for pursuing opportunities abroad
- Unlike most countries, the US follows a citizenship-based taxation system, meaning that Americans must file taxes annually, even if they do not earn any income in the US.
Company%20Profile
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company Profile
Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
The specs
Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder
Power: 70bhp
Torque: 66Nm
Transmission: four-speed manual
Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000
On sale: Models from 1966 to 1970
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
