By Amr Adel

Dubai – Mubasher: The value of the petrochemicals sector amounted to $6.5 billion in the United Arab Emirates and $88 billion in the GCC region during 2014, revealed Abdel Wahab Saadoun, secretary general of Gulf Petrochemicals & Chemicals Association (GPCA).

The petrochemical industry contributed around 31% of the industrial sector’s share in gross domestic product of GCC states in 2014. This percentage is 5% lower than the one recorded in 2013, which is ascribed to the fallout of global oil slump, Saadoun added, speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a conference held in Dubai today.

However, he highlighted the strong growth potential for the industry across the GCC despite the continued fall in crude prices.

“The sector is expected to grow by 6% annually over the coming five years, with the volume of petrochemical production rising to 190 million tonne by 2020,” said the official.

He indicated that the fall in production components, coupled with the decline in oil prices, helped boost output compared with demand, which led to a reduction in petrochemical prices by 20-30% from June 2014 till now.

Translated by Sayed Abdel Rahman