The Middle East Industry

Working to strengthen its reputation as a shipbuilding and maritime centre, Dubai is looking to leverage its location astride one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world and the growing need for local and regional maritime support to develop a major shipbuilding and maintenance industry.

The already busy glass industry in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is set to expand even further in 2013 with yet another overseas company setting up production facilities in the emirate. Indeed, RAK’s central location and low costs have become desirable for numerous companies looking to set up in the region.

With the first phase of the Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) projected for completion in the fourth quarter of 2012, Abu Dhabi’s manufacturing base looks set to expand significantly over the next few years. Authorities from Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC), the state-owned entity that is developing KIZAD and other manufacturing zones and ports in the emirate, are confident that KIZAD’s low-cost business environment and links to transportation infrastructure will help ensure its success.

The creation of a new multi-billion-dollar industrial city in Bahrain could soon be given the green light as the government steps up its efforts to build on its manufacturing base.

The limestone deposits of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK), along with the emirate’s five ports, an airport and good road links to the rest of the UAE and GCC, have enabled the emirate to develop a substantial industrial sector, most notably in ceramics. Indeed, despite facing rising costs and uncertainty in overseas markets, RAK’s flagship industrial manufacturer recently reached a major milestone.

Jordan’s mining sector has a promising outlook for the coming year, and not just in the sector’s traditional segments such as phosphate and potash, but in newer areas of extraction as well. As profits for established mining companies grow, so do opportunities in shale oil and uranium extraction.