Industry

With proven crude oil reserves of 98bn barrels and an established downstream infrastructure, which has positioned the UAE as the sixth-largest petroleum producer in the world, the country’s industrial landscape is dominated by hydrocarbons activity. In 2014 the Investment Development Bureau identified several targets for future development, including building materials, petrochemicals, metals...

Abu Dhabi’s security, aerospace and defence industries have become a critical component of the emirate’s ongoing push to both protect critical national infrastructure and its interests abroad, as well as transform itself into a knowledge-based, diversified economy. Total military spending in the UAE stood at 5.1% of GDP in 2012 before rising to 6.1% in 2013 and then moderating to 5.7% in 2014...

With the decline in oil prices placing the federal budget under pressure, and demand for power and water increasing at a rapid rate, the authorities have turned their attention toward more effective consumer pricing and demand management. Diversification away from reliance on combined-cycle gas independent water and power producers will have a transformative effect on the supply side of the...

Tunisia boasts Africa’s sixth-largest manufacturing sector, and the country’s geography is an important asset for growth, offering direct access to the Mediterranean Sea and proximity to the European market, to which the bulk of the country’s exports are destined. Despite such logistical advantages, labour productivity, the size of the informal sector and problems in some subsectors – such as...

Having already established itself as a manufacturing hub within South-east Asia, Thailand’s industrial sector is looking to further differentiate itself from other countries by moving up the value chain and expand its capabilities to produce greater value-added products in a variety of modern industries. This strategy seeks to spur industries to progress up the technology ladder from...