Danube to invest US$27.3 million in the UAE steel industry in 2008

UAE. Danube Building Materials, a leader in the construction, building materials, and shop fitting industry, has announced its plans to invest AED 00 million (US$27.3 million) in the UAE steel industry in 2008, a move which is set to render steel as one of the largest segments of its business.

This is in line with the company's aim to leverage the burgeoning demand within the UAE construction sector, which currently expends 5 million tons of steel products on an annual basis. In addition to the ever-increasing number of property developments, the local steel market has been witnessing impressive growth due to the widespread availability of energy in the UAE to support the manufacturing of steel products, which has prompted Danube to capitalise on the ideal business prospects to expand its own range of products.

Laying the pillar for important industries as well as the base for manufacturing activities, the flourishing steel industry in the UAE mirrors the country's rapid development in the economic and industrial sectors.

The UAE has been a significantcontributor to the overall development of the GCC's steel trade, which currently ncludes 45 working factories with a total value of US$ 2.8 billion (AED10.3billion) and employing more than 11,000 workers. The potency of the local market has provided a steady supply of steel to sustain industries that manufacture steel-based products in the region, which has grown to comprise 136,000 employees working at 1725 factories in 2005, and attracting US$ 6.5 billion (AED 23.9 billion) worth of nvestments.

"The building blocks of the UAE's economic development are the significant core industrial and infrastructure sectors such as the steel industry, which creates an intersectional relationship between traders, manufacturers and suppliers," said Rizwan Sajan, Chairman, Danube Building Materials.

"Fuelled by the continuous increase in the demand for steel products, both long and flat products, and the presence of an extremely diversified business network in the UAE and across the GCC, we have made a strategic decision to dedicate more focus to this particular segment in an attempt to fully leverage the surging demand for steel and steel-based products in the country. Through this movement towards supporting an important model for the development levels of societies, we are looking forward to increasing our contribution in upgrading the steel industry, thereby reiterating the UAE's standing as one of the fastest growing economies in the world."

Danube's foray into the steel industry will involve large-scale imports of steel products from Turkey, China, Taiwan, Korea, South Africa, Ukraine, Russia, India, Saudi Arabia and Iran, which will then be processed as per customer requirements. Maintaining a high level of quality across all its products, the AED 1 billion (US$273 million) company is currently in the process of initial market testing to ensure the smooth delivery of its products to customers upon the launch of its full-fledged operations next year.

"Our dedication towards supplying the huge demand for steel products goes beyond merely satisfying the volume requirements of the market. More importantly, we are keen on delivering steel products of outstanding quality in a bid to maintain the strong reputation we have built up in the market. This is certainly an exciting time for us at Danube, as we foresee a tremendous amount of effort being exerted for this phase of our continuous expansion, which we are certain will be rewarded in the future," concluded Sajan.

Danube is one of the largest building materials suppliers in the UAE and the region with an extensive portfolio of over 10,000 products ranging from MDF, plywood, timber, laminates, veneers to sanitary fittings, hardware, ironmongery, steel, aluminum and glass among others. In 2004, the company began its operations in Jebel Ali with a 19,000 square metre warehouse cum office, which serves as its regional hub and caters to booming markets in UAE, Oman, Bahrain and India.

Danube Building Materials  was established in Dubai 14 years ago. The company has in stock more than 10,000 products and value added services in-house. Danube operates from its head offices in a 285,000 square foot facility in JAFZA North and 365000 square feet area in JAFZA South, which includes warehouses, logistics, kiln drying and a factory.

Danube has grown from a small trading firm in 1993 into one of the largest building materials company in the region, with eight branches in the UAE, two in Oman, one in Bahrain, two in China and one in India. Danube has a team of 400 people working from strategic locations in Jebel Ali, Deira, Abu Dhabi and Muscat. Danube's prestigious projects include Emaar projects such as Emirates Hills, the Burj Al Arab, Shangri-La Hotel, Grand Hyatt, and a private palace in Muscat.