Petrochemicals producer Borealis is considering joint investments with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in projects across growth markets such as India and China, and to set up a plastics recycling facility in the Ruwais region, its chief executive said.
The Austrian chemicals company, owned by the country’s state-backed producer OMV as well as Mubadala Investment Company, is a joint developer with Adnoc of Abu Dhabi’s biggest chemicals facility, Borouge.
The scale of the potential investments could be around the size of Borouge, Alfred Stern, the chief executive of Borealis, told The National at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (Adipec) on Monday.
"We will build on the natural resources available in Abu Dhabi. So I would say that big-scale things will be built on that, which means that it's going to be similar to Bourouge-type investments," Mr Stern said.
“We fit into [the broader Adnoc petchems expansion strategy] in a great way. These are the discussions happening on the same scale, and we continuously look together where should we place our next growth effort.”
Borealis, together with Adnoc, is investing in Borouge 4, and beyond that the company is “looking for the next opportunity on the horizon, in growth countries, like India, China and the Asian region,” he said.
The petchems sector is expected to grow by 60 per cent by 2050 with capital expenditure being allotted to meet upstream and downstream demand in the Middle East alone, chief executive of Adnoc, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, said in October.
The UAE, as a major oil producing nation that accounts for about 4.2 per cent of global crude production, plans to expand its investment portfolio, he said at the time.
Adnoc, which expects to invest around $45 billion (Dh165.3bn) on downstream with partners over the next five years in Abu Dhabi, also signed its first international partnership with Saudi Aramco in June to develop a chemicals complex on the west coast of India.
Borealis also has aspirations to upscale the company in India, the third-biggest Asian economy. However, Mr Stern said the JV partners for the Indian refinery will have to make enough progress on the project before Borealis could start engaging in the downstream petchems projects there. "It would take a [long] enough time," he noted.
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Read more:
Quicktake: Deciphering the energy industry's jargon
Exclusive: Borealis looks at expansion of its plastics recycling business
Borouge awards petchem plant contract amid output boost
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Borealis, which completed the acquisition of Ecoplast Kunststoffrecycling in Austria in October, will focus its potential plastic recycling facility in Abu Dhabi’s Ruwais on industrial waste rather than consumer waste.
“If you want to be a recycler, this is an obvious place to start. That [plastic recycling facility] could be a possibility in Ruwais, and we are looking at that,” he said.
There are no concrete plans as yet, and Borealis is discussing options with Adnoc.
“Anything we do here, we would always discuss with Adnoc and see what is the win-win situation for both the partners,” he said. “We wouldn’t do anything without them.”
The company, whichacquired German recycler mtm plastics in 2016, is manufacturing products using recycled plastic.
It recently had success with the production of 100 per cent recycled plastic bottles with consumer goods company Henkel in Europe.
Borealis, which looks to crackdown on marine litter in Indonesia, the second biggest plastic polluter of the seas after China, is looking to add two more Indonesian cities to its pilot project. It is also looking to bring in more international partners to contribute to its "Stop" programme, Mr Stern said.
Borealis plans to raise about $10m to $15m to fund the pilot project in new cities.
“In Indonesia alone, an estimated 100 tonnes [of waste] is going into marine littering. We need to scale it fast [the pilot project] and we need more partners,” he said.
“I’m talking with a lot of my colleagues in the industry, but it is not possible to solve this [problem] as petrochemical producers, we need the entire supply chain.”
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
RESULTS
Lightweight (female)
Sara El Bakkali bt Anisha Kadka
Bantamweight
Mohammed Adil Al Debi bt Moaz Abdelgawad
Welterweight
Amir Boureslan bt Mahmoud Zanouny
Featherweight
Mohammed Al Katheeri bt Abrorbek Madaminbekov
Super featherweight
Ibrahem Bilal bt Emad Arafa
Middleweight
Ahmed Abdolaziz bt Imad Essassi
Bantamweight (female)
Ilham Bourakkadi bt Milena Martinou
Welterweight
Mohamed Mardi bt Noureddine El Agouti
Middleweight
Nabil Ouach bt Ymad Atrous
Welterweight
Nouredine Samir bt Marlon Ribeiro
Super welterweight
Brad Stanton bt Mohamed El Boukhari
Copa del Rey
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
Who are the Soroptimists?
The first Soroptimists club was founded in Oakland, California in 1921. The name comes from the Latin word soror which means sister, combined with optima, meaning the best.
The organisation said its name is best interpreted as ‘the best for women’.
Since then the group has grown exponentially around the world and is officially affiliated with the United Nations. The organisation also counts Queen Mathilde of Belgium among its ranks.
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The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
Essentials
The flights
Return flights from Dubai to Windhoek, with a combination of Emirates and Air Namibia, cost from US$790 (Dh2,902) via Johannesburg.
The trip
A 10-day self-drive in Namibia staying at a combination of the safari camps mentioned – Okonjima AfriCat, Little Kulala, Desert Rhino/Damaraland, Ongava – costs from $7,000 (Dh25,711) per person, including car hire (Toyota 4x4 or similar), but excluding international flights, with The Luxury Safari Company.
When to go
The cooler winter months, from June to September, are best, especially for game viewing.
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
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