Demand for steel in UAE set to double in three years

Demand for steel in UAE set to double in three years
By Cleofe Maceda, Staff Reporter GULF NEWS Published: December 24, 2007, 22:58

Dubai: Demand for steel products in the UAE is expected to double in the next three years, but there is not enough supply in the Middle East to meet the growing needs of the construction sector, an industry expert said on Monday.

Amleshwar Dayal, resident advisor for ETA Group's steel division, said the rapidly expanding construction sector, as well as the oil and gas projects, will drive the UAE's steel demand from five million tonnes in 2007 to 10 million tonnes in 2010.

Dayal said the region's steel requirement will grow from 30 million tonnes this year to 45 million tonnes in 2010.

He said the region will continue to be an importer of steel, with substantial supplies coming from Turkey and Ukraine.

"There is no other way but to import. We don't have enough steel manufacturing facilities here," Dayal told Gulf News in an interview.

Manufacturing facilities

He said the UAE in particular does not have enough electricity and gas to power steel manufacturing facilities, so there is a shortage of steel products in the local market.

According to the organisers of SteelFab and SteelTech exhibitions, which will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah in January, the demand for steel in the Middle East is growing at the rate of nine per cent per year. They said the value of active construction projects in the GCC has already exceeded $1 trillion. Of this, Saudi Arabia accounts for more than $200 billion, Kuwait over $211 billion, and the UAE above $221 billion.

"These development projects have contributed towards the unprecedented growth in demand. Today, there is massive demand for steel working machinery, equipment and consumables across the Middle East," said Fasahat Ali Khan, adviser to the chairman and board of directors of Expo Centre Sharjah.

"With no sign of any letup in infrastructure and industrial development in the region, it can only be assumed that the demand will further rise," Khan said.