Kemira opened a new office in Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, Dubai, in June. Now service and technical support are local in Middle East.
Ahmed Al-Hamadani, Manager for Jebel Ali new office, why was it important for Kemira to open new office in Dubai?
It’s estimated that 56 per cent of the world’s oil reserves and 30 per cent of its oil production is from the Middle East. Kemira Oil & Gas division should have a strong base and presence in this market.
What are Kemira’s core functions in Dubai?
The focus and core functions will be providing innovative and customized chemical products for the Middle East oil and gas market.
What kind of demand is there for Kemira´s expertise in Middle East?
Kemira is a worldwide leader in the development of high performance chemistries to meet and provide solutions to the customer’s needs in the oil and gas sector. We have a large selection of chemicals for chemical extraction as well as process solutions for the oil and mining industries backed by highly qualified application specialists and quality manufactured products. Middle Eastern countries need to increase their production rates as well as the efficiency of their oil and gas producing wells, because of their heavy dependency on oil export. Since the high increase in domestic oil consumption, less oil is being exported, thereby is hurting their economies.
What are Kemira’s main challenges in Dubai and Middle East?
Globally Kemira is well known among oil and gas companies. However, in the Middle East, the national oil companies do not know Kemira well since we haven’t had a strong presence in the area earlier. The challenge is to make our products stand out against many of the reputable chemical companies that have been in the Middle East for many years. Also, many of these chemical companies have established a strong work relationship and agency agreements with the oil service companies and the national oil companies over the last decade. Our challenge is to gain trust and build relationships with these companies in a very short time.
How big is Kemira in the Middle East? How much could it grow there?
Currently we sell to a handful of companies in the Middle East. However, the potential is very high and it looks promising.
One of the main events in oil and gas business, Middle East Oil & Gas Show and Conference, is organized in Bahrain in September. What is Kemira’s goal there?
Our goals are to communicate our new focus on the Middle East market with the opening of the Dubai office and having a local sales force; promote our brand and raise awareness; and showcase our products and technology to existing and new clients.
Kemira in Dubai:
Kemira Europe Oy
European Business Center, Jebal Ali, opposite Green Community, 3rd floor, office no. BC21, Dubai, UAE
P.O. Box 213515
United Arab Emirates
Tel. +97148135521
Fax +97148135586
About Dubai
- Dubai is the second largest emirate in the United Arab Emirates and has the largest population with around 1.8 million inhabitants.
- The UAE has a sizable annual trade surplus which is strongly based on oil revenue. Other sources of income have been searched for, especially in Dubai, and significant portion of revenue is now made from increasing tourism and trade within the Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone.
- Clean water is mainly produced from sea-water by removing salt and impurities. The groundwater supply is declining continuously and its quality deteriorates as a result of population growth and industrialization. Current estimates for Dubai and the Middle East region is that there exists, on average, a four-day supply of fresh drinkable water.
Story: Johanna Paasikangas-Tella
Photo: Laura Tarraf