The prospect of easy availability of cheaper raw materials seems sufficient to set Saudi Arabia's industrial diversification in motion. Saudi Arabia's embryonic plastics industry will gladly greet the prospect of the kingdom's petrochemical producers selling their output to local manufacturers at a discount. This could well set in motion Saudi's industrial diversification into downstream plastics facilities. The availability of cheap polymer and olefins output may set the ball rolling for the plastic manufacturing units.
Apart from inexpensive materials, the region also provides other advantages in terms of world class infrastructure and the energy that can be supplied at low rates than anywhere else in the world. The Gulf region, itself will have an increased demand as a result of the plastic-intensive global companies such as Toyota and Unilever considering to establish manufacturing facilities in the region.
However, the international firms are apprehensive to invest in the plastics industry sector as the downstream plastic manufacturing units have fewer direct benefits as opposed to the basic chemical producers which are benefited by the cheap gas feedstocks.
12-Jul-08 
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