DUBAI // The UAE is a country that loves its marble, for gleaming stone surfaces in shopping centres, palaces and mosques.
All of it is imported, almost 70,000 tonnes a year at a cost of about Dh1,000 a tonne, and often from thousands of kilometres away.
That is a lot of stone and a long way to bring it. But there could be an alternative. Geologists have found a source of the decorative stone far closer at hand, in the mountains of the Northern Emirates.
The discovery could reduce the burden of imports and provide a boost to jobs and the local economy.
"There is a significant amount of these stones," said Abdullah Gahnoog, an adviser in the Ministry of Energy's petroleum and mineral resources division.
"I would think there would be a lot of interest in them. In time, this could be an important source of employment for a large number of people."
The investigation into decorative stones was carried out by the British Geological Survey (BGS) as part of a 10-year, Dh90 million study of the Emirates that began in 2002.
Two geologists collected samples from areas in the Hajjar mountains in October last year, taking the stones to be polished and then back to the UK for further tests.
Their detailed findings have been presented to the Ministry of Economy but will not be released until late next year.
However, a pamphlet by the BGS at the Mena Mining Congress in Dubai last week said tests had been conducted to determine how porous and strong the stones were, as well as their appearance when polished.
The study found 12 sites contained rock types that could be right for use, and stressed "many more locations could be suitable after local site investigation".
About Dh66m worth of marble was imported in 2009, or more than 67,600 tonnes, mostly from Iran and Oman but also from Turkey, Italy and China.
Marble is essentially limestone that has been chemically altered by heat. While there is very little of it in the UAE, the sedimentary limestone that is common here can look very similar when polished.
"Marble is a trade term and it has a loose meaning, geologically speaking," said Clive Mitchell, a task leader at BGS. "It's normally just applied to rocks that take a polish.
"The UAE does have marbles that are equivalent to many of the rocks that are imported. There's definitely potential for a … quarrying industry to be set up."
Mr Gahnoog said the ministry was considering an awareness campaign to educate people on the resources available in the Emirates.
"We intend to carry out an exercise of contacting the architects, the contractors and the merchants and making them familiar with what we have there," he said.
"People are used to Italian marble and importing stones from other countries. They need to be weaned off these and taught to appreciate the local rocks that are available.
"It will definitely be cheaper but it's also a matter of taste. Some of the stones are very attractive.
"I would not say they are as attractive as Italian marble but they are attractive. Because of that, it will take time to develop an interest."
Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah have dozens of quarries and cement factories, which cast clouds of dust into the air and over residential areas.
Mr Gahnoog said that came from using explosives to dislodge rocks and huge crushers for grinding the stones into dust. But decorative stones are extracted differently.
"It does not cause any problems to the environment," he said. "In a quarry where you extract rocks for decorative stones you need to delicately extract these rocks.
"You don't use explosions because that destroys the rock. You need to remove a big block and take it to a factory for cutting and polishing."
Mr Gahnoog said that after the study was completed and distributed to the emirates, it would be up to private companies to apply for a quarry.
"We are only responsible for carrying out the study," he said. "We will leave the rest to the market."
mcroucher@thenational.ae
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Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
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5. Total annual management cost for your pension account is 2 per cent or more, including platform, underlying fund and advice charges.
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Elvis
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