Dubai Investments to Construct First Float Glass Plant in UAE

The US$ 200 million project, jointly set up by Dubai Investments, Abu Dhabi Investment Company (ADIC) and a select group of strategic investors from the region, is expected to produce 600 tons of float glass per day.Dubai Investments has already established a formidable presence in the glass processing industry, through its subsidiary companies, Emirates Glass and Lumiglass Industries.

Khalid bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Dubai Investments, said, "The primary objective of setting up Emirates Float Glass is to support the regional glass processors by supplying premium quality float glass products for the architectural and automotive segments. With two glass processing units as subsidiaries, Dubai Investments realizes the importance of having local production."

"Construction work on the project will commence in October this year and is estimated to take 18 months for completion. However, we are working diligently on multiple fronts to expedite the completion of the project ahead of schedule," bin Kalban added.

A 410,000 square metre waterfront plot of land, where raw materials can be unloaded directly from ships, has been allocated for the project at the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi. The plot has provision for an additional float glass production line of similar capacity as well as an independent 36 cathode magnetic sputtered vacuum coating facility of 5 million square metre capacity.

Plant construction data and operation know-how including product formulation will be provided by a leading American technology firm while the general contractor will be an Italian firm specialized in float plant construction. A leading international project management firm has been selected to coordinate with the Italian contractor on the plant construction activities.

Furthermore, Dubai Investments is working on an agreement for the supply of high-quality silica sand required for float glass production, and is in the final stages of negotiations with suppliers from Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt.