(MENAFN - Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Equate Company Mohammad Hussein stated on Wednesday GCC countries' production of petrochemicals exceeded 100 million metric tons annually. He added in remarks to KUNA, on sidelines of the 7th of Gulf Petrochemical and Chemical Association Annual Forum (GPCA), more than 80 percent of the total Gulf production is dedicated for export for Asian and European countries, beside other markets.
Proportion of Kuwait's share of the overall GCC production does not exceed six percent, due to failure of establishment of several mega projects since the launching of all production units of Equate company in 2010, he stated.
GPCA, launched in 2006, aims to be a pioneer in petrochemicals producion, not only in the Gulf, but also in other regions. Moreover, it offers consultations in all related fields according to the regulations and laws -- universally applicable, he said. Most important challenges facing this industry are related to availability of feeding fuel, human resources, difficulties of shipment and export due to crowded ports, as well as shortage in infrastructure in most of the region's ports, he affirmed.
Further challenges are instability of markets, lack of local markets for such products, a situation that compels producers to export most of the production, in addition to requirement for electricity production in the gulf region and need for natural substances like gas, he added.
Annual growth levels reach 50 percent regarding consumption of petrochemical substances, whereas the production makes only 30 percent, which means demand outstrips supply, he stated.
A member in GPCA Board of Directors should understand the importance of transformative industries for the Gulf countries in general, and especially Kuwait, considering that this industry contributes in developing the added value of intermediate and extractive industries, he said.
The decision of establishing transformative industries is governed by a lot of controls and considerations like the economic feasibility, quality, price, and quantities, he added.
The most important achievements of Equate company is being the first Kuwaiti-global partnership in the field of petrochemicals, while the return on its capital since the first distribution of profits in 2002 reached only 65 percent annually, he stated.
The net profits of the company hit USD 6 billion since the launching of the producing operations in 1997 and seven times the capital has been paid back since then, he said.
The slogan of the company "Partners in the Gulf" was represented in employing around 700 Kuwaiti citizens, besides pumping around USD 1 billion into various local economic sectors.
The local companies will assume 90 percent of the Equate's special contracts, a company which contributed in the growth of the local plastic transformative industries with more than 300 percent in not more than 13 years. The forum themed "Enhance competitiveness in a rapidly changing world" officially kicked off today, while it started the preparatory activities since yesterday.
UAE Minister of Energy Mohamed bin Dhaen Al Hamli will participate in the two-day event, besides other 13 CEOs of regional and global companies and organizations.
This forum comes to develop the strategies of enhancing the competitiveness of industry and maintain is sustainable growth especially in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
