Emirates Steel completes phase 2

Emirates Steel has finished the second stage of expansion plan and plans to increase its production to around 6.5 million tonnes per annum within the next four years, the company said in a statement yesterday. The company, a direct subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Basic Industries Corporation (ADBIC), has pointed to a buoyant construction market in the UAE capital that is driving the growth of the steel market in the country. Meanwhile, Suhail Al Ameri, chairman of Emirates Steel, has said that the ongoing expansion of the company's facilities will eventually create thousands of jobs. "Now that Phase 2B is complete, an estimated 2,000 more jobs will be created in the country either through downstream operations or by suppliers," he said. Article continues below The first phase, worth $816 million, was completed in June 2009 and has increased the rolling output capacity from 750,000 tonnes to 2.1 million tonnes. The second phase of the expansion plan has raised its capacity to 2.8 million tonnes per annum and its capacity to produce direct reduced iron (DRI) to 3.2 million tonnes, making it one of the biggest DRI producers in the Middle East, Emirates Steel said. "The plant's new facilities together with its planned further expansions will see Emirates Steel increase its production to around 6.5 million tonnes per annum within the next four years," the statement said. "This is the latest achievement in the completion of the expansion programme at our integrated complex in Musaffah. This shall give Emirates Steel a competitive advantage over its international competitors by giving it better access to local energy resources and utilising sophisticated technology," said Al Ameri. "Both the expansion plan and overall growth strategy of Emirates Steel are in line with the government's long-term plans for the development and diversification of the emirate's economy. The expansion is also part of the overall backward integration plan, which will ensure a competitive market position for Emirates Steel," he said. He added: "Phase 2B is now complete, and this makes Emirates Steel the only producer of jumbo and heavy sections in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region and will be able to offer drastically-reduced lead times and an improved product offering in terms of piece count and cut-to-length services." He pointed out that in January 2006 the company launched a two-phased expansion programme worth $2.45 billion.