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MEED
May 2009 Online Content

View all stories from this issue.

  • 3Com wins Zamil Saudi deal

    3Com has won a major contract to provide Saudi Arabian manufacturing and fabrication group Zamil Industrial Investment with a core-to-edge network infrastructure to support its business. The system will run 3Com's multi-layer 10Gb Switch S7900Es at its core, with stackable Switch 5500s and Switch 4800s at the edge. The infrastructure will be managed the company's Intelligent Management Centre.

  • Abraaj eyes stake in DP World

    Dubai-based Abraaj Capital is considering buying a stake of more than 15% in DP World, reported the Financial Times. The stake in the port operator controlled by the Dubai government would have a value of about $1bn.

  • Abu Dhabi aluminium plant 50 per cent complete

    Abu Dhabi-based Emal International has completed 50 per cent of its new $5.6bn aluminium smelter at Taweelah in Abu Dhabi, according to a senior company executive.

  • Abu Dhabi creates a blueprint for Gulf infrastructure

    Privately-financed roads are the final frontier for Middle East infrastructure. Abu Dhabi is preparing to break the mould and blaze a trail for others to follow.

  • Abu Dhabi evaluates Louvre work bids

    Abu Dhabi's Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) is evaluating bids for an enabling works package for the Louvre Abu Dhabi project on Saadiyat island.

  • Abu Dhabi Investment Company and UBS raise $250m for infrastructure fund

    Abu Dhabi Investment Company (ADIC) and Switzerland's UBS have announced the first close of a $600m fund that will invest in infrastructure projects throughout the Middle East and North Africa (Mena).

  • Abu Dhabi lowers tourism projections

    The chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority said the emirate has cut its tourism growth projections 'in light of the current economic climate'. In its prior forecasts, ADTA predicted that Abu Dhabi would receive about 2.7 million visitors by 2012. However, Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon said the authority was now targeting 2.3 million visitors. Abu Dhabi played host to about 1.5 million guests last year and Sheikh Sultan said he expected the same number of visitors this year.

  • Abu Dhabi metro to be operational in 2015

    Dr Abdul Qader Al Shahbani, project manager of the Surface Transport Master Plan at the Department of Transport in Abu Dhabi, said the first phase of the metro in the capital will be 42.5 km long, and will be ready by September 2015. The 42.5km track for the first metro line would be 2.13 km at grade track (ground level), 4.91 km elevated, 16.2 km cut and cover tunnel and 19.26 km in the bored tunnels.

  • Abu Dhabi prequalifies contractors for pumping station deal

    Abu Dhabi Sewerage Services Company (ADSSC) has prequalified at least six contractors for a deal to build a pumping station on its strategic tunnels enhancement programme (Step).

  • Abu Dhabi Shipbuilding profit down 62%

    Abu Dhabi Shipbuilding has said that its net profit tumbled by nearly 62% to Dhs10m in Q1 2009 from Dhs26.74m in Q1 2008. The company's total revenue dropped to around Dhs159.3m from Dhs197.4m in the same period, and operating income also slumped to Dhs12.59m from Dhs21.89m.

  • Abu Dhabi to cut oil production

    Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) will cut its oil production in June.

  • Abu Dhabi to keep oil production steady in July

    Abu Dhabi will keep its oil production steady in July, excluding one of its main oil fields.

  • Abu Dhabi to study future of gas reserves

    Abu Dhabi is planning a major study into how it should use its gas reserves after 2020, according to a senior executive at state-owned Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Company (Adgas).

  • Adic invites firms to bid for Abu Dhabi towers deal

    Abu Dhabi Investment Council (Adic) has invited selected companies to bid by 1 July for a contract to build its new headquarters and office complex in Abu Dhabi.

  • Adwea to sell Fujairah stake to Taqa

    Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (Adwea) announced it will sell a majority stake in its Fujairah 2 independent water and power project (IWPP) to Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa).

  • Agency assigns stable foreign currency rating to Libya

    Fitch Ratings has assigned a long-term foreign currency issuer rating of BBB+ to Libya.

  • Agency gives Kuwait a stable credit rating

    US-based credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has affirmed Kuwait’s AA- sovereign credit rating with a stable outlook on the back of the country’s strong balance sheet.

  • Agility 2008 revenues up

    Agility's chairman of the board and managing director, Tarek AlÙ€Sultan has announced a 10% increase in income in 2008 amounting to KD1.84bn, compared to KD1.67bn in 2007. For the year ended December 31, 2008, the company has achieved a net profit amounting to KD141m and operating profits amounting to KD161m, while the company's assets have increased in 2008 by 7% to KD1.64bn as the company had obtained loans amounting to KD220m, Al-Sultan said. He said the net debt for 2008 has reached KD160

  • Agility makes $127m profit

    Agility generated net profits of KD3.7m ($127m) during the first quarter of 2009, a 1.3 per cent fall year-on-year.

  • Agility profit down 1.3%

    Agility's Chief Financial Officer Ehab Aziz told Reuters that the company has posted a 1.3% fall in Q1 net profit to KD37m compared to KD37.5m in the same period a year earlier. Net profit before non-recurring items rose 16.4% to KD39.2m. Revenues fell by 8.1% to KD407.4m in the quarter, citing a decline of volumes in its commercial logistics business. The firm also said operating profit before non-recurring items rose 12.8% to 43.75 in Q1.

  • Agility Projects inks Chevron deal

    Kuwait's Agility Project Logistics has confirmed a deal with Chevron Australia to provide supply base operations and transport services to the Gorgon Project. 'This project will require significant investment and recruitment and will have an important impact on the West Australian economy,' said Agility Australia's managing director, Mick Turnbull.

  • Agility wins $1.4bn US Army deal

    Kuwait-based logistics provider Agility said it has won a contract worth up to $1.4bn with the US Defense Logistics Agency. Under the terms of the deal, Agility will supply and distribute food and non-food products to US forces in Iraq.

  • Agility wins three contracts overseas

    Kuwait-based Agility was awarded 3 civil works contracts last week, according to Al-Qabas newspaper. The first, valued at around $200m and renewable for a 3-year period, includes providing logistics services for Shell, Axon Mobil and International Chevron, at a recently-discovered gas concession in Sydney. The second contract, with around 10-12 million euros expected revenue, was signed with the international food and beverage company Kraft Foods, to provide logistics services in different ma

  • Agthia opens juice factory

    Agthia-owned Al Ain Mineral Water Company has opened on Thursday its new factory for manufacturing Capri-Sun juice, Gulf News has reported. Production and distribution is in alliance with Germany-based Wild Group, and is meant for the GCC market, with the exception of Saudi Arabia.

  • Air Arabia profits rise 32 per cent

    Air Arabia has reported AED103m ($28m) of net profits during the first quarter of 2009, an increase of 32 per cent on the same period in 2008.

  • Air cargo market may have hit bottom, says IATA

    The decline in the air cargo freight market following the international financial crisis may have hit bottom, says Giovanni Bisignani, the director-general of the Interntational Air Transport Association (IATA). Global air freight volumes took a record 23% year-on-year nosedive in January, he noted, but it has been at least been stabilizing at levels around 20% lower than a year ago. He said it will take at least another three or four months to determine whether the cargo freight market is ba

  • Airbus cuts A380 delivery target for 2009

    Airbus has said it plans to deliver 14 double-decker A380s this year, down from the 18 planes it had planned, and will deliver more than 20 next year. The company said the reduction will have 'no significant impact' on its earnings before interest and taxes this year.

  • Al Mal in Tunisia port bid

    Tunisian state news agency TAP has said that Kuwait's Al-Mal Investment Co and Canada's SNC-Lavalin Group have bid for Tunisia's $1.4bn port licence. The port would have a capacity of five million containers per year and is located in Enfida, some 130 km south of Tunis. Al-Mal, a firm controlled by family-owned Kharafi Group, is partnering with Hutchison Port, the world's largest container terminal operator, in its offer to buy the deep-water Enfida port licence, TAP said.

  • Al Mutlaq to market warehouse management system in Saudi

    Saudi Arabia's Al Mutlaq United Company has signed an agreement with Australian supply chain solutions dealer Microlistics to market its ISIS warehouse management system in the kingdom. The Microlistics solution includes ISIS Express, a pre-configured, off-the-shelf WMS solution; ISIS Enterprise, an advanced WMS providing seamless enterprise integration; and ISIS 3PL, a WMS solution for the growing 3PL market providers, the company said.

  • Al Sorayai carpets expand to Equador

    Saudi-based carpets manufacturer Al Sorayai Trading Industrial Group has expanded into Latin America, as it widens its client base in Equador. The company will launch a new brand, in line with its increased production. The Group has reported 20% higher returns during the first quarter of 2009, compared to the same period in 2008.

  • Al-Ain to spend $1.6bn on infrastructure

    Al-Ain Municipality plans to invest AED6bn ($1.6bn) in capital projects over the next two years, said Abdulla al-Ameri, director of the municipality's internal roads and infrastructure department.

  • Aldar prices $1.25bn bond

    Abu Dhabi real estate developer Aldar has priced a $1.25bn bond issue at 8.75 per cent after receiving bids from investors which totalled $4.8bn.

  • Aldar starts international investor roadshow

    Abu Dhabi real estate developer Aldar held meetings with potential investors in Dubai on 12 May as part of an international roadshow to gauge market demand for a potential capital raising.

  • Al-Fouzan frontrunner for Riyadh university deal

    Saudi Arabia’s Al-Fouzan Trading & General Contracting Company is the frontrunner for a SR1.5bn ($408m) contract to build housing for employees at the Imam Mohammed bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh.

  • Alghanim plans Asian acquisitions

    Omar Kutayba Alghanim, CEO of Kuwait's AlÙ€Ghanim Industries has told Reuters the conglomerate is looking at acquisitions and multiple opportunities, primarily in Southeast Asia. Al-Ghanim said the conglomerate would look to buy smaller stakes at first and possibly build those holdings with time. "It's a market that is resilient, where the drivers for that economy are more sustainable. India and Vietnam are great markets," Al-Ghanim said.

  • Al-Ghosaibi defaults on $1bn loans

    Ahmad Hamad Al-Gosaibi & Brothers, a Saudi holding company owned by the Al-Gosaibi family, has defaulted on foreign exchange transactions, trade finance loans and swap agreements amounting to $1bn, according to MEED. There is concern that the company may also default on the next payment, due in November, of its $700m-loan facility arranged by BNP Paribas and Germany's WestLB in May 2007. Saudi and Bahraini banks, as well as some of the Gulf's international banks, have exposure to Al-Gosaibi's

  • Al-Jaber starts work on Masdar headquarters

    The UAE's Al-Jaber Group has started on the enabling works and foundations package for the Masdar headquarters project at the Masdar City development in Abu Dhabi.

  • Al-Khadda bids low for Kuwait water injection project

    The local Al-Khadda International General Trading & Contracting Company is the favourite to win a contract to design and install two water injection pumps in west Kuwait after submitting the lowest price in an April bid round.

  • Al-Latifia starts work on Aramco office building

    The local Al-Latifia Trading & Contracting has started work on an estimated SR700m ($191m) office building for Saudi Aramco.

  • Almarai profit spills into expansion

    Saudi milk company Almarai is planning to expand from dairy land to produce other food products beyond its home market, investing $1.6bn on expansion and development, Financial Times has reported. Almarai is forming a joint venture with PepsiCo, holding 48% of the venture looking to build greenfield projects and acquisitions. Almarai has also acquired 75% stake in Jordanian company Teeba, and eyes Egyptian dairy company as well as Saudi poultry Hail Agriculture Development Company.

  • Almulla to open hotel in Makkah

    UAE-based Almulla Hospitality, a new Sharia-compliant hotel operator, has signed an agreement to open its first property in Makkah. The Adham will be a five-star, 875-room hotel, and is scheduled to open in 2012.

  • Al-Rajhi to arrange financing for Jabal Omar project

    Saudi Arabia's Al-Rajhi has been mandated to arrange the financing for the $3bn real estate development in Mecca being developed by Jabal Omar Development Company.

  • Alshamel plans regional expansion

    Kuwait-based travel management company, Alshamel International, has said in a statement that it is eyeing extensive expansions in Saudi Arabia and Oman for the remainder of 2009, bringing the number of its regional offices to seven. Derin Cameron, CEO of Alshamel International Holding Company has also said the firm will also look at strategic mergers and acquisitions with successful travel agencies to expand its market reach and customer service capacity.

  • Alstom completes Moroccan rail work

    Alstom has finished modernising signalling and telecoms systems on a railway line between Ennouasser and Jorf Lasfar in Morocco.

  • Al-Toukhi and Poyry sign co-operation memorandum

    Saudi Arabia's Al-Toukhi Company for Industry, Trading & Contracting and Finland-based Poyry Energy signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work together on power projects.

  • Amadeus gains market share lead in Middle East

    Amadeus, a provider of technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, today announced that it reached a combined market share of 40% in the Middle East and Africa region in March 2009. The company also announced that Sharaf Travel, one of the largest travel agencies in the UAE, has fully migrated to the Amadeus distribution platform.

  • Amman invites prequalifications for Fujeij wind farm

    Jordan's Energy & Mineral Resources Ministry has issued a request for prequalification for a project to build a wind farm at Fujeij, near Amman.

  • Anantara to manage hotels in Morocco

    Anantara Resorts, a hospitality firm owned by Thailand-based Minor International, has announced that it will manage Anantara Marrakech Resort & Spa and Anantara Mogador Resort & Spa in Morocco, both set to open in 2011. Anantara Marrakech will be constructed within the Atlas Golf Resort, while Anantara Mogador will be adjacent to the town of Essaouira on the Atlantic coast.

  • Anantara to open at Empty Quarter

    Bangkok-based Anantara Hotel Group is set to open by the end of the year its five star hotel Qasr Al Sarab in the Rub Al Khali desert, also known as Arabia's Empty Quarter. Qasr Al Sarab is located in the Liwa Oasis in Abu Dhabi, set to offer 150 hotel rooms and 60 private villas.

  • Anantara to operate Al Madina A'Zarqa

    Anantara Hotels has inked agreement with Blue City Company 1 to operate and manage the first beachfront hotel in Phase 1 of Al Madina A'Zarqa on behalf of BCC1, under the name Anantara Al Madina A'Zarqa Resort & Spa, Oman. Anantara Al Madina A'Zarqa Resort & Spa is the first of the 20 hotels to be constructed in Al Madina A'Zarqa, consisting of 122 keys.

  • APL to ship to Abu Dhabi

    Singapore's NOL subsidiary, APL, is to include Abu Dhabi on its express service linking South Asia, the Gulf and the Red Sea, The National has reported. The group holds 3.6% of the global container shipping market. APL will now call at the emirate's Mina Zayed port, as well as Bahrain, as part of its mainline service. The group also reported a 28% increase in shipments to Mina Zayed last year.

  • Arabian Cement Jordan plant to open in 2010

    Muhammad Uthman, CEO of Saudi Arabia's Arabian Cement, said the company will launch its first plant in Jordan next year to boost capacity, reported Reuters. The new plant, which is currently under construction, will have an annual production capacity of 2 million tonnes by the first quarter of next year.

  • Arabtec wins Nation Towers work in Abu Dhabi

    A local joint venture of National Projects Construction (NPC) and Arabtec Construction has been awarded the AED1.6bn ($436m) contract to build the Nation Towers project on Abu Dhabi Corniche.

  • Aramco changes management structure

    Saudi Aramco has promoted six executives to newly created vice-president roles as part of a regular review of its management structure.

  • Aramco crude production rises in 2008

    Saudi Aramco's crude oil production rose to 8.9 million barrels a day (b/d) in 2008 from 8.5 million b/d in 2007 while gas production increased to 8.3 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) from 7.9 billion cf/d for the previous year.

  • Aramco set to complete Khurais oil field work

    Saudi Aramco expects to complete work on its 1.2 million-barrel-a-day (b/d) Khurais oil development by the end of May in a move that will increase the kingdom's crude capacity to 12 million b/d.

  • Aramco starts production at Nuayyim oil field

    Saudi Aramco has started production at its 100,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Nuayyim oil field south of Riyadh, about six months after its original deadline.

  • Aramex revenue down 6%, profit up 19%

    Dubai-listed logistics Aramex has said in a statement that its Q1 net profit rose 19% to Dhs43.1m, and company revenues fell 6% to Dhs463.4m, as lower costs offset a decline in revenues. The group's net profit margin grew from 7.3% in Q1 2008 to 9.3% in Q1 2009.

  • Aramex to allow foreigners to own 49% of company

    The shareholders of Jordan-based courier company Aramex have approved a proposal that will allow foreign investors to hold 49% of the company's shares. GCC nationals will be able to own the remainder of the company's stock, Aramex announced today.

  • Austrian group in MidEast JV

    Austria-based Tyrolean Jet Services and Clear Sky, a privately-held investment and private equity firm, have announced the launch of Clearsky-Tyrolean Jet Services (CST), a Beirut-based joint-venture offering executive air services in the Middle East. CST will offer charter services through its own fleet and third party aircraft and management services in the first phase and maintenance and FBO in the second phase.

  • Austrian launches Amman flights

    Austrian Airlines has recently launched a non-stop service to Amman, adding the route to its Vienna hub. The new service will connect Vienna and Amman three times weekly, with flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sunday.

  • Axios Systems inks Gulf deals

    IT service management company Axios Systems has signed deals with Al Rajhi Bank in KSA, a major GCC retail group and Future Pipe Dubai in the UAE. Axios has opened an office in the UAE in 2007, and has recently doubled its staff numbers in the Gulf to manage new and existing business. Axios' current customer base includes among others, the Supreme Education Council in Qatar, Gulf News in the UAE, Central Bank Oman, The Sultan Center in Kuwait and numerous clients in Saudi Arabia, including S

  • BA opens new cool Kuwait station

    British Airways World Cargo has launched its 50th constant climate station in Kuwait, designed to handle imports of constant climate, the carrier's temperature-controlled product for pharmaceuticals. Freight delivered using constant climate is kept at a constant temperature through the use of active temperature-controlled Envirotainer containers. Stuart Forsyth, product development manager at BA World Cargo, said that temperature-controlled goods sector is the fastest growing in the global ai

  • BA resumes Saudi flights

    British Airways will resume flights to Saudi Arabia from May 31. The British carrier will fly five times a week to both Riyadh and Jeddah. It stopped flights to Saudi Arabia in 2005, but the airline believes it can run a profitable route to the kingdom.

  • Babel commission seeks investors in Iraqi province

    Babel province in central Iraq is seeking investors for four new projects.

  • Badr Investments seeks $425m for Jordan solar plant

    Jordan's Badr Investments is leading a consortium that is trying to raise $425m for the kingdom's first solar power plant.

  • Baghdad criticises Kurdistan gas deal

    Iraq's Oil Ministry has criticised an $8bn deal between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and energy producers to supply gas to the Nabucco pipeline, saying it contravenes Baghdad's existing export rules.

  • Baghdad inks deals on road and bridge projects

    Baghdad's Mayoralty has announced the signing of contracts to set up roads and bridges projects at a total cost of 115 billion Iraqi Dinars, in a bid to ease traffic congestion in the Iraqi capital. The projects include the construction of al-Shaab bridge, the al-Zuhour bridge, the al-Mustansiriya bridge and Sahat al-Matahaf bridge in al-Allawi area, in addition to the reconstruction of the Baghdad International Airport road.

  • Baghdad to spend $100m on road and bridge repairs

    The Baghdad Mayoralty has signed ID115bn ($99m) of contracts to repair roads and bridges around the Iraq capital.

  • Bahrain Air to take delivery of planes

    Bahrain Air managing director Ibrahim Al-Hamer has said that the airline is expecting to expand its fleet to nine Airbus aircraft within the next five months. The carrier will introduce its sixth Airbus A320 aircraft on May 29, with the seventh and eight aircraft arriving by the end of June. The ninth is scheduled for delivery in October. Bahrain Air is to expand its network to include Istanbul and Mumbai by July, and Sana'a, Addis Ababa, Karachi, Lahore and Riyadh from October.

  • Bahrain appoints lead arrangers for sovereign bond

    Bahrain has appointed the UK's HSBC, France's Calyon, and Germany's Deutsche Bank to act as bookrunners on its $500m sovereign bond issue.

  • Bahrain Central Bank urges local bank creditors to meet

    The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) is urging the creditors of The International Banking Corporation (TIBC) to meet and discuss restructuring the firm's debts after the company was downgraded by a rating agency for failing to repay some its debts.

  • Bahrain plans to raise $2.2bn for Addur project

    Bahrain should raise $2.2bn for a new independent water and power project (IWPP) by 31 May, according to bankers close to the deal.

  • Bahrain reveals $987m surplus

    Bahrain has said it ended the fiscal year 2008 with a budget surplus of BD372m ($987m) despite increasing spending on development projects to BD508m.

  • Bahraini inflation drops to 3 per cent

    Inflation in Bahrain has fallen to 3.1 per cent in April as inflationary pressures continue to ease across the region.

  • Bahraini logistics zone work underway

    Sheikh Daij bin Salman Al Khalifa, chairman of Bahrain's General Organisation for Sea Ports, has said work on the multi-million dinar Bahrain Logistics Zone will start next month at Khalifa bin Salman Port complex in Hidd. "The hi-tech equipment includes four very large Post-Panamax gantry cranes, considered to be among the best available in the region, as well as rubber tyre gantries," Sheikh Daij said. Construction of the complex, which has four times the capacity of the old port, should be

  • Bank urges Riyadh to continue making deposits

    The government of Saudi Arabia needs to continue making medium-term deposits in the domestic banking system to avoid creating a liquidity gap, according to John Sfakianakis, chief economist at Saudi Arabia's SABB.

  • Banks freeze Saudi billionaire Al-Sanea's accounts

    The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama) has ordered the country's banks to freeze the accounts of billionaire Maan al-Sanea, according to reports from Saudi daily newspaper Al-Watan.

  • Barwa confirms offer to buy Panceltica

    Doha-based Barwa Real Estate Company has told the Doha Securities Market (DSM) that it has made an offer to acquire local steel frame producer Panceltica Qatar.

  • Bell Helicopter signs deal with Iraq

    Bell Helicopter has won a $60.3m contract to build and supply 24 helicopters for Iraq.

  • Best Western opens Doha hotel

    Best Western International, Asia has expanded in Qatar, set to open this June its first hotel in the country, the Best Western Doha Seef Hotel. The hotel is within Doha's central business district, close to the city's 7km long corniche along the Arabian Gulf waterfront. The hotel is also within reach of the main cultural showcases, namely the Qatar Museum, the Museum of Islamic Art, and Fanar Qatar Islamic Cultural Centre.

  • Bidders line up for Oman solar power project

    About 55 companies have purchased tender documents for a consultancy contract for Oman's first solar power project.

  • Bidders show interest in Duqm advisory deals

    A total of 19 companies have purchased tender documents for a technical advisory contract on Oman's planned Duqm independent water and power project (IWPP).

  • Bids due for Oman airport terminal buildings

    Contractors have until the beginning of June to submit bids for the construction of new airport terminal buildings in Oman at Salalah and Ras al-Hadd.

  • Bids in for Ajman desalination contract

    Eight companies have bid for a contract to build two desalination plants in Ajman.

  • Bids in for Manama North Shore water work

    Two companies have bid for a project to divert water transmission pipelines as part of the redevelopment of Manama North Shore in Bahrain.

  • BMB announces $5.7m loss

    Bahrain's BMB Investment Bank has reported a $5.7m loss for the first quarter of 2009 as a result of the economic downturn and increased writedowns.

  • BMI wants to launch London to Baghdad flights

    UK-based BMI airlines has said it is waiting for the government's approval to launch direct flights between London and Baghdad. The carrier said it has "met with senior Iraqi government officials and told them BMI is ready and willing and ideally placed to provide flights between the two countries". No commercial flights have flown directly between the two countries since the first Gulf War in 1991.

  • Boeing prepares Dreamliner test flight

    Boeing has said that it has moved its 787 Dreamliner to the flight line and fuel testing, in preparation for its first test flight, scheduled to take place this quarter. The company said a full simulation of the Dreamliner's first flight, testing all flight controls, hardware and software, has been carried out successfully. 'We are making great progress, and moving ever-closer to first flight,' said Scott Fancher, VP and general manager of the 787 Dreamliner programme.

  • Booking deal boosts hotel commissions for agents

    Pegasus Solutions and Travelport have signed an agreement so that agents can transfer booking data from Galileo to Pegasus Commission Processing. It means commissions will be processed, reconciled and consolidated before weekly payments are made to agents. A Travelport spokesperson said the deal would help agents address the challenge of collecting hotel commissions.

  • Bookings from Middle East down 50%

    Liesure travellers from the Middle East are making up to 50% fewer bookings for this summer compared to the same period in 2008, travel agents told Emirates Business. Last year Europe and the UK were the most popular destinations for Middle East travellers for the summer, while this year the focus has shifted to within the Middle East, led by Beirut and Cairo, agents said.

  • Borouge boosts plastics capacity to meet growing demand

    Abu Dhabi Polymers Company (Borouge) plans to triple its plastics production capacity to meet growing demand in China, Asia and the Middle East.

  • Borouge to up production on demand surge

    Borouge, a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Borealis, has said that in order to support the growing demand from China, Asia and the Middle East, it is tripling its polyolefins manufacturing capacity to two million tpa by 2010, and is planning to bring on stream an additional 2.5 million tpa of polyolefins. Furthermore, the company said it will also be investing in an Innovation Centre in Abu Dhabi, as well as a new Shanghai compounding manufacturing unit that will

  • Boubyan Bank reports $40m loss

    Kuwait's Boubyan Bank has reported a loss of KD11.6m ($40.06m) during the first three months of 2009, compared to a profit of KD5.06m during the same period in 2008.

  • Boubyan port project submitted

    Minister of Public Labor and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr. Fadel Safar said in a statement to KUNA news agency that the venture for the development of the Boubyan port is ready for submission to the Central Tenders Committee, and that the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad causeway had already been referred to the commission. The causeway project is aimed at shortening the distance between the heart of Kuwait City and Al-Sabbiah from 104km to 37.5 km, and is designed to be built across the K

  • Brazilian firm takes over Sadia

    Perdigao SA, Brazil's largest food company, has agreed to take over rival Saudi Arabia-based Sadia in a share-swap transaction that will form the world's biggest poultry processor by market value, reported Bloomberg. Perdigao has pursued a takeover of Sadia after the latter had posted the first annual loss in its 65-year history. Perdigao will change its name to BRF Brasil Foods SA and incorporate Sadia shares owned by HFF Participacoes SA, a holding company formed by investors who have more

  • Brother reports 6% growth in Middle East

    Brother International Corporation Gulf (BICG) has reported a growth of 6% in the Middle East for the 12 months to the end of March. BICG managing director Shinji Tada said the firm is expecting to register 15-20% growth in the current year on the back of a particularly strong showing in Bahrain and doubling the market presence of Brother's Colour Laser MFC market in UAE in 2009, in anticipation of the projected surge in the Laser MFC markets by 2010.

  • BT signs call centre deal with Emirates airline

    Emirates airline has signed a five-year agreement with British Telecom UAE to set up a virtualised infrastructure that will link together seven contact centres based in Manchester, New York, Melbourne, Mumbai and Dubai, as well as nine town office locations. The airline said that the deal will enable it to provide additional services to passengers and agents, plus cut operating costs and improve efficiency.

  • Burj Al Arab won't drop room rates

    Jumeirah Hotels and Resorts Chief Executive Gerald Lawless has said that unlike the rest of the group's properties, the Burj Al Arab will not offer discounted room rates to boost demand. Jumeirah's other hotels have dropped their prices, but Lawless said the luxury sector has been resilient to the crisis. He admitted that occupancy levels were down - although he would not give details - but said they were within expectations.

  • Cairo to open financial bids for wastewater scheme

    Egypt's Housing, Utilities & Urban Development Ministry has completed the technical evaluation of bids for the New Cairo wastewater treatment plant.

  • Cargo terminals to add to throughput at KIA

    Kuwait's Directorate General of Civil Aviation has finalised contracts and specifications for the implementation of the first and second phases of developments at Kuwait International Airport that will include new cargo buildings, allowing the facility to handle up to two million tonnes of freight every year, reported KUNA. The airport's western runway will also undergo further development and extension, together with the construction of a third runway, aircraft maintenance facilities and fue

  • Changes in Kuwaiti parliament unclear

    Prospects for change within Kuwait's political system remain unclear despite a 40 per cent change in the make-up of the country's national assembly following the 16 May elections.

  • Chartered denies report of bid by Abu Dhabi

    Singapore's Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing has denied a report by the Business Times that it had received a bid for 60% of its shares from Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC). 'From time to time, Chartered engages various parties in discussions to pursue business opportunities or concerning the strategic direction of the company, with a view to maximising value for all shareholders. There is no assurance that any definitive or binding agreement will result from th

  • Chemaweyaat signs Madeenat design deal with Neste Jacobs

    Abu Dhabi National Chemicals Company (Chemaweyaat) has signed a long-term frame agreement with US/Finnish Neste Jacobs for front-end engineering and design (FEED) work at its Chemaweyaat Industrial City (Madeenat Chemaweyaat) at Taweelah.

  • Circle Oil makes discovery in Egypt

    The UK's Circle Oil has discovered oil and gas in Egypt's onshore northwest Gemsa concession in the Gulf of Suez basin.

  • Commercial Bank of Kuwait profits drop 91 per cent

    Commercial Bank of Kuwait (CBK) has reported a 90.8 per cent drop in profits in the first quarter of 2009.

  • Commodore secures Abu Dhabi headquarters contract

    The local Commodore Contracting Company has been awarded the estimated AED900m ($245m) contract to build the new headquarters building for Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic).

  • CommScope sets up Saudi facility

    CommScope Enterprise Solutions, a division of CommScope, Inc., has announced a joint venture agreement with BT Global Industries, a subsidiary of Saudi-based BT Applied Technology to set up a manufacturing facility in Jeddah for high end structured cabling solutions. CommScope Saudi Arabia LLC will supply infrastructure solutions in Saudi and the wider Middle East.

  • Consolidated Contractors and Turkish firm win Muscat airport deal

    Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC) and Turkey's TAV have won a RO500m ($1.3bn) construction contract for Muscat International Airport.

  • Contractors prequalify for Abu Dhabi's Marasy development

    Abu Dhabi-based International Capital Trading (ICT) has prequalified at least seven companies for the contract to build its Marasy development in Abu Dhabi.

  • Contractors submit bids for hospital work in Dubai

    The Iranian Hospital in Dubai received bids on 5 May for a contract to build an estimated AED300m ($81m) extension to the hospital.

  • Contractors submit bids for Iranian oil field project

    National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has received bids for a project management consultancy (PMC) contract covering its Band-e-Karkheh field in the western province of Khuzestan.

  • Copri wins Kuwait sewage upgrade work

    Kuwait's Copri Construction Enterprise has won a contract for the renovation of sanitary drainage networks in the Hadiya and Riqqa areas.

  • Cross-border trips in a hire car require permission, say agents

    The UAE has reinstated a law that requires residents who want to drive to Oman and Saudi Arabia in a hire car to secure written approval from car hire companies first, reported The National. The policy, which has been on the books for years but not enforced, has been reinstated following a rise in car theft among vehicles hired by people from Saudi and Oman.

  • Crowne Plaza launches recycling drive

    Crowne Plaza Bahrain and Recycling for Charity have launched a joint recycling initiative that will be implemented at the hotel from June, and will position the hotel as the first in the kingdom to actively engage in recycling initiatives and manage energy consumption more effectively. The hotel aims to reduce the seven tons of waste it produces weekly to below two tons through recycling.

  • Dana Gas increases Egyptian output from El-Wastani

    The UAE's Dana Gas has increased daily oil production from its Egyptian fields by 20 per cent compared with 2008 levels after increasing its output from the El-Wastani gas plant in the Nile Delta region.

  • Dana Gas increases Egyptian reserves after Nile discovery

    The UAE's Dana Gas will add up to 30 billion cubic feet of gas to its Egyptian reserves after making a discovery in its Nile Delta concession.

  • Danube eyes Saudi expansion

    Danube Building Materials has announced plans to invest Dhs80m in Saudi Arabia in 2009. It is also planning to launch of a retail complex in Jeddah next month as well as two two manufacturing plants, including factories that produce Malemaine pressing units and gypsum ceiling tiles.

  • Dhabi Contracting secures Dubai transport work

    Dubai's Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) has awarded two contracts totalling AED750m ($204m) to the local Dhabi Contracting for building works on the Dubai Metro and the emirate's bus network.

  • Dolphin commits to complete pipeline project on time despite delays

    Abu Dhabi-based Dolphin Energy is committed to completing its Taweelah to Fujairah pipeline project on schedule despite construction holdups.

  • Dolphin Energy appoints bookrunners for bond deal

    Abu Dhabi's Dolphin Energy has appointed bookrunners for a $1bn bond that it plans to issue in late June.

  • DP World inks Flinders Ports deal

    Marine terminal operator DP World has announced its partnership with Australia's Flinders Ports, which include a 30-year concession for DP World's operations in Adelaide. DP World will hold 60% of the stake in the new joint venture and 40% for Flinders Ports. DP World has operated the terminal at Adelaide since 2005.

  • DP World plans private equity sale

    DP World, the Dubai-based ports operator, is in talks to sell a minority stake to a regional private equity company.

  • Dubai aims to censor more web content

    Dubai Police Chief, Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim said he is still pursuing a plan to censor 500 search terms deemed offensive in a bid to block access to certain internet sites in the UAE. 'Although no progress is made yet, we will pursue the issue over the next two weeks,' he was quoted as saying yesterday by Khaleej Times. Last month, Dubai Police announced their intention to protect the youth in UAE from 'pornographic' and 'anti-religious' content on video sharing site YouTube wh

  • Dubai Airport Freezone 2008 profits up 84%

    Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Airport Free Zone has said that it has recorded an 84% increase of net profit, and 59% increase in revenues, in 2008 compared with the previous year. Sheikh Ahmed expressed confidence in the continuation of those growth rates, given the current expansion plans, which have allocated Dhs2bn for investment in new facilities.

  • Dubai Airport Freezone profit up 48%

    The Dubai Airport Free Zone (DAFZ) has reported a 48% increase in its net profit and 49% increase in revenue in Q1 2009 compared with the same period last year. European companies represent more than 35% of the total current number of companies, while American companies and others from the GCC represent 18% and 16% respectively.

  • Dubai airport passengers rise 6.5% in April

    Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, said the number of passengers using Dubai International Airport rose 6.5% in April to 3,271,435 compared with the same month in 2008. 'The results for April are ahead of our expectations and this bodes well for the rest of the year,' Griffiths said.

  • Dubai Airports CEO confident of growth plans

    The financial crisis has so far had no impact on Dubai's airport growth plans, Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, said today at the Dubai Airshow. The Middle East aviation sector can 'speak with an air of confidence' as it is the only region in the world to record growth in the aviation sector since the onset of the economic crisis last year, he said. In Dubai, passenger traffic rose 2.3% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year, and recorded 6.5% growth in

  • Dubai Airports forecasts growth in 2009

    The number of passengers passing through Dubai International Airport could grow in 2009 despite the world recession and declining global aviation activity, according to Paul Griffiths, chief executive officer of Dubai Airports.

  • Dubai Airports not to raise charges

    Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive of Dubai Airports, told Emirates Business that Dubai Airports will not increase the passenger service charge at Dubai International any further this year. Dubai Airports recently increased the charge to Dhs75, up from Dhs30 earlier. 'We deliberately held it low because of the current economic situation,' Griffiths said.

  • Dubai Holding profits down 29 per cent

    Dubai Holding has announced a 29 per cent fall in profits during 2008, with profits falling to AED9.8bn ($2.7bn) for the full year, compared to AED13.9bn in 2007.

  • Dubai hotel revenue rises in Q1

    Marketing has revealed in a statement that Dubai's hotels accommodated 1.89 million tourists and generated Dhs4.26bn in revenues in Q1 2009, a 5% increase over the corresponding period in 2008. DTCM has also noted a rise in the number of operating hotels and hotel apartments to 519 in Q1 2009, from 475 during the corresponding period in 2008, in addition an increase of 17% in accommodation capacity to 40,864 rooms from the same period in 2008.

  • Dubai Industrial City to launch second phase

    Dubai Industrial City (DIC) has said in a statement that it plans to launch the second phase of its open storage yards, as the 2.8m sqft of open storage yards of phase one is currently utilized by UAE-based companies. Rashed Al Ansari, VP of Dubai Industrial City, said DIC plans to have the second phase operational within the next couple of months.

  • Dubai Investments profits down 40 per cent

    Dubai Investments, the Dubai Financial Market listed investment company, has reported a fall in first quarter profit of 40.7 per cent, with profit at AED290.7m ($79.3m) for the period.

  • Dubai Islamic Bank buys back $51m sukuk

    Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) has bought back $50.6m of its $750m sukuk which matures in 2012, at a 12 per cent discount to the face value of the bonds.

  • Dubai Islamic Bank to buy back $200m sukuk

    Dubai Islamic Bank will buy back up to $200m of a $750m sukuk that matures in 2012.

  • Dubai launches e-bus cards

    The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority has launched the first phase of the Automatic Fare Collection System in the form of e-cards for people travelling in public buses. The systems have been installed in a number of buses and will be phased into all of the emirate's fleet.

  • Dubai looks beyond the debt mountain

    The Burj Dubai is the definitive expression of Dubai's long-term vision and an inspiration during the tough times caused by the economic downturn.

  • Dubai prepares waste recycling plant tender

    Dubai Municipality plans to issue a tender for the construction of a waste-to-energy plant in either June or July. French consultant Cabinet Merlin is currently preparing the tender documents.

  • Dubai real estate set to recover in 2011, says EFG-Hermes

    Dubai's real estate market will not recover until late 2011, according to a new report by Egyptian investment bank EFG-Hermes.

  • Dubai Ritz-Carlton expansion due this summer

    Ritz-Carlton will start work this summer to double the size of its hotel in Dubai. Currently a 138-room hotel on the beach in the emirate's Marina area, Simon Cooper, global President and COO, said the 'relatively small hotel' will be expanded outwards rather than upwards, with the build taking about two years to complete. Speaking to AME Info, he added that its hotel in Dubai's financial district - DIFC - will open before year end. Cooper said the Middle East is of growing importance to Ritz

  • Dubai RTA launching

    Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is to run a 'My Metro' campaign to promote the Dubai Metro to city dwellers. Highlighting its services and facilities, the campaign will initially focus on timings, design and general information, while the second phase comprises all information related to the metro operation, fare, public services, station services, multi-modal integration, security and safety. Phase III will set the stage for its September 9 launch date and covers media, promotional

  • Dubai taxi speed limiters installed

    The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has installed limiters in some taxis to stop them from going faster than 100kph. About 200 taxis have been installed with the device. The project was initially launched in 2006, but later abandoned. In Abu Dhabi, silver taxis cannot drive faster than 120kph.

  • Dubai to have new traffic radars

    The Director of the General Department of Traffic, Brigadier Engineer Mohammed Saif Al Zafin has said that Dubai Police has started using more sophisticated radars which are able to detect a range of traffic violations including driving on the shoulder, leaving no safety space, unfastening seat belts and risky lane changing, as well as speeding. The new radars will also help in counting the number of the vehicles on the road.

  • Dubai to hold talks with India on bauxite project

    Abdullah Kalban, CEO of Dubai Aluminium Company (Dubal) told Reuters that the state-owned smelter will be holding talks with the Indian government regarding plans for its bauxite mine and alumina refinery and smelter project in Orissa after the Indian elections end. The project, a joint venture with Indian engineering conglomerate Larsen and Toubro, was originally scheduled to start in 2009, but Dubal had said it expected delays due to 'bureaucratic issues in India'.

  • Dubai to use driving training simulator

    The licensing agency of the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has acquired a vehicle simulator which will help assess the abilities of learner drivers, according to Gulf News. A senior official said the technology used in the system is unique as it is the sole system that uses actual vehicles, and is able to produce CDs with aerial photos of the vehicle in a road environment. 'We are in talks with the driving institutes to check the effectiveness of the system and the possibility of i

  • Dubai World to open Zimbabwe reserve

    A Dubai World official has confirmed that its African unit, Dubai World Africa, is developing the Bubye reserve in Zimbabwe, as part of plans to boost its investments in Africa. '[Africa] is a place where you can see growth... double-digit growth,' Dubai World Chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem told the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference.

  • Dubai World, MGM push casino deal

    Dubai World and MGM Mirage have agreed to finish building the $8.5bn Las Vegas entertainment complex CityCenter, after reaching agreement by nine lenders led by Bank of America to commit to all of a $1.8bn senior secured credit facility, The National has reported. MGM Mirage has also agreed to pay any completion costs that may exceed the $8.5bn budget.

  • Dubai's mega airport to open in June 2010

    Dubai's airport chief said today that Al Maktoum International Airport will officially open in June of next year. 'The first runway will be ready in June 2010. The first cargo flights will leave then and the airport will be ready for passengers,' Paul Griffiths told delegates at the Arabian Hotel Investment COnference.

  • Dubai's RTA offers scratch cards to top up Salik

    Maitha bin Adai, CEO of Dubai's Traffic and Roads Agency (RTA) said the agency has introduced scratch cards of Dhs50, 100 and 200 denominations to enable Salik users to top up their accounts. The top-up process has to be completed by following-up the instructions at the reverse side of the card, or by calling Salik Call Centre at 800-Salik (72545) and complying with the voice guidance, or else through logging at the Salik portal (www.salik.ae).

  • Dubal may shelve Saudi venture

    An executive of state-owned Dubai Aluminum (Dubal) told Reuters the company's plans for the $5bn aluminum smelter in Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah Economic City are uncertain because of the economic conditions. Dubal had signed an initial agreement 13 months ago with the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) and Emaar Economic City to develop the 700,000 tonne per year smelter.

  • Egypt awards contracts for offshore gas blocks

    Egyptian Gas Holding Company (Egas) has awarded four of the seven exploration blocks on offer in its latest bid round to international energy majors after the companies submitted offers in early February.

  • Egypt begins prequalification for Suez wind farm

    Cairo is moving ahead with its first privately developed renewable energy project, a 250-MW wind farm to be built on the Gulf of Suez.

  • Egypt cement exports to fall

    Egypt-based CI Capital has said that cement exports were expected to drop to 700,000 tonnes in 2009 from 1.3 million last year. Exports should recover slightly the following year and hit 2.3 million tonnes in 2011 and 3.9 million tonnes by 2013. The fall is mostly due to a government ban on exports for four months, beginning in April, in a bid to stabilise local prices.

  • Egypt ends nuclear talks with Bechtel

    The Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority has stopped negotiations with the US' Bechtel for a consultancy contract on the country's nuclear power programme.

  • Egypt mine to produce first gold bullion

    Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Sameh Fahmy has told the Mena news agency that the country will produce the first block of gold bullion from the Sukari mine in the Eastern Desert in June. Gold explorer Centamin Egypt said in April the reserve estimate for the mine stood at 6.4 million ounces.

  • Egypt signs energy co-operation accord with Iraq

    Egypt has signed a deal with Iraq that will give its companies the right to compete for exploration, construction and drilling contracts in the republic.

  • Egypt signs gas exploration deal with Polish firm

    Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) has signed a $48m deal with Poland's state-owned gas exploration and production company, PGNIG, for drilling in the Western Desert.

  • Egypt to launch oil and gas bid round

    The state-run Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) will launch a new oil and gas exploration round in the first week of June for international oil companies.

  • Egypt tourism revenues fall 13%

    Egypt's Tourism Minister, Zoheir Garrana has said that the country's tourism revenue has dropped 13.2% in the first four months of 2009 to $3.6bn due to the global slowdown and a sharp drop in eastern European visitors, Reuters has reported. Garrana said that the number of visitors from Ukraine had dropped over 57% while visitors from Poland and Russia had declined by around 23% due to the relative weakness of those countries' currencies against the dollar. However, luxury tourism had not slo

  • EgyptAir signs OnAir deal

    EgyptAir has signed an agreement with OnAir to install full Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir inflight passenger communications services on its fleet of twin-aisle Airbus 330-300 aircraft. EgyptAir passengers will be able to use their phones to make and receive calls, send and receive text messages and emails, and access the internet. The service will start in August 2010, and will be available on European and North American routes as well as in the Middle East.

  • Egypt's central bank cuts interest rates

    A decision by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to cut interest rates for the third time this year comes into effect today.

  • El Sewedy to build power cables plant in Yemen

    Egypt's El Sewedy Cables, in association with Hassan & Massoud Company, is establishing a low-voltage cable production plant in Yemen. The maximum output of the plant will be 12,000 tonnes of copper and aluminum. El Sewedy will own 70% of the plant, while Hassan & Massoud will own the remaining 30%.

  • Emirates adds 12 more flights to Middle East

    Emirates Airline today announced an additional 12 flights per week to five major travel hubs in the region, bringing the airline's total number of weekly flights across the Middle East to 197. Effective 1st July, Emirates will introduce two additional weekly flights to Kuwait, two additional weekly flights to Amman, three additional weekly flights to Damascus, four additional weekly flights to Doha and one additional flight to Sanaa, making it a daily service.

  • Emirates adds 22 flights to India

    Dubai-based Emirates airline is adding 22 more weekly flights to India, in addition to the existing service of 163 flights per week to 10 Indian gateways. The flights will be added during the summer and winter months to high demand routes such as Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

  • Emirates Airline reports 80 per cent drop in profits

    Emirates Airline has announced an 80.4 per cent fall in net profits to AED982m ($268m) for the 2008-9 financial year.

  • Emirates flies A380 to Bangkok

    Emirates airline has announced it will fly its next A380 instalment to Bangkok starting 1st June. In connection with the launch, it is offering a one-time price special, available only on Emirates' A380 daily service to/from Bangkok on EK 372/373, tying up accommodation deals with 12 Marriott Thailand properties.

  • Emirates Glass inks deal with EFG

    Emirates Glass, in association with LumiGlass Industries and Saudi American Glass Company, has signed a Dhs20m agreement with Emirates Float Glass to buy 20% of EFG's total glass production, reported Gulf News. Under the agreement, EGL and its sister companies will collectively purchase 100,000 square metres of glass from EFG every month. The major supply of the order, which amounts to an annual 1.2 million square metres of glass, will go to Emirates Glass.

  • Emirates increases free baggage allowance

    Emirates airlines has announced an increase to its free baggage allowances provided to passengers with tickets issued on or after May 4th. Economy Class passengers are entitled to 30kg, while 40kg for Business Class and First Class passengers are entitled to 40kg and 50kg respectively. Gold and Silver members of Skywards frequent flyer program are entitled to an additional baggage allowance of 16kgs and 12kgs over their ticketed allowance respectively.

  • Emirates invites bids for transport regulation system

    The UAE's National Transport Authority (NTA) has invited bids for a contract to devise a national system of regulation for the country's transport network.

  • Emirates launches 'best price' guarantee

    Emirates Airline is offering a guarantee to customers who make a booking through emirates.com/ae that they will not find a better Emirates fare elsewhere on the web. Under the promotion, called Best Price in the UAE, customers who find a better Emirates fare for the same itinerary on another website, with the same flight at least $20 cheaper, will get a refund of the difference from Emirates.

  • Emirates Oil opens Korea chemicals terminal

    Dubai-based Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc) has completed its $76m chemical storage terminal project at Ulsain, South Korea.

  • Emirates opens its biggest airport lounge

    Emirates Airline has opened its third and largest airport lounge, in Düsseldorf International Airport, Germany. The 700 sq.m lounge offers the airline's Premium Class travellers complimentary broadband internet access, a business centre, showers, widescreen TV, massage chairs and refreshments.

  • Emirates passes deposit guarantee law

    The UAE has passed a law guaranteeing all bank deposits, including deposits held by foreign banks, as part of its moves to shore up the banking system in the wake of the global financial crisis.

  • Emirates profits fall 72%

    The Emirates Group has warned that the immediate economic outlook for the aviation sector is not improving after it saw its net profit nosedive 72% for its financial year ending March 31, closing at Dhs1.49bn, compared to Dhs5.3bn in FY2007-08. The company blamed the combined impact of surging fuel prices last year and the global recession for the fall. However, Emirates pointed to the fact that it has now reported 21 consecutive full year net profits and said revenues increased 10.4% on the

  • Emirates SkyCargo boosts revenues to $2bn

    Emirates SkyCargo increased revenues by 14.8 per cent to AED7.7bn ($2.1bn) for its 2008-9 financial year.

  • Emirates slows down on Boeing 777 deliveries

    Emirates Airline has said there will be a delay of few months for its 2010 deliveries of Boeing 777, Gulf News has reported. Emirates has received its 75th Boeing 777, which approximately costs $250m to $275m. The slowdown in deliveries was attributed to the credit crunch and slow down in the airline business, according to Abdullah Al Shams, manager of the Emirates Boeing fleet acceptance team.

  • Emirates will not join Gulf union currency

    The UAE has informed the GCC General Secretariat that it will not join the GCC single currency.

  • Emirates, Etihad comply with US access law

    Spokespersons for both Emirates and Etihad airlines have confirmed their two companies' compliance with the US Department of Transportation's airline carrier regulation, governing access protocols for passengers with special needs. The carriers said that the required ground staff and flight crews have received the necessary training for full adherence and compliance with the new US regulations.

  • Eni signs $1.5bn Egypt investment deal

    Egypt's Petroleum Ministry and Italy's Eni have agreed a deal which will see the oil major invest $1.5bn in exploration and production over the next five years.

  • Esfahan Steel furnace to come online

    Blast furnace Number 3 project of the Esfahan Steel Company will be ready to come on stream in the near future, according to the Tehran Times. The furnace has the capacity of producing 1.4 million tons of molten cast iron per annum, which will increase the Esfahan Steel Company's annual molten cast iron output from the current 2.2 million tons to 3.6 million tons.

  • Etihad and SR Technics ink training deal

    SR Technics has signed a technical training agreement with Etihad Airways under which it will provide over 1000 instructor days of theoretical and practical training on Airbus A320, A330 and A340, as well as difference training, run-up in simulators, health and safety, and aviation/technical English. The contract will run until February 2010.

  • Etihad Chairman appointed

    HH Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in his capacity as the Ruler of Abu Dhabi has issued a decree appointing Sheikh Hamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan as the new chairman of Etihad airways' board of directors. The new board includes Sheikh Khalid Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Head, and Ahmad Ali Al Sayegh, Mohammad Mubarak Fadhil Al Mazroui, Mubarak Hamed Al Muhairi, Hamed Abdullah Al Shamsi and Khalifa Sultan Al Suwaidi.

  • Etihad launches first flight to Kazakhstan capital

    Etihad Airways has launched its maiden flight to Astana, its second destination in Kazakhstan, from its Abu Dhabi home base. Etihad's current four times a week service to Almaty has been reduced to three times a week to facilitate the launch. The Kazakhstan capital is now served, once a week from Abu Dhabi, with the airline using a two-class Airbus A319 configured to carry 110 passengers with 20 seats in business class and 90 in economy class.

  • Etihad launches new business class offer

    Etihad Airways is offering discounted fares in business class to its UAE customers who book seats up until May 16th. All outbound travel must be completed by June 25th and journeys completed by June 30th. The promotion applies to more than a dozen routes, with return flights (excluding taxes, fees and charges) starting from Dhs1,000.

  • Etihad to fly to Istanbul

    Etihad Airways has announced four new weekly flights from Abu Dhabi to Istanbul. Etihad will operate a two-class Airbus A320 to Istanbul, configured to carry 140 passengers with 20 seats in business class and 120 in economy.

  • Etihad to fly to Istanbul

    Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has announced that it will commence flights to Istanbul next month. The carrier said it will introduce four weekly services to Turkey's capital from June 1, deploying a two-class A320 with 140 seats on the route.

  • Etihad to unveil new-look first class suite

    UAE national carrier Etihad Airways will unveil its new first class suite and revamped business class bed later this week, during the Arabian Travel Market show. The airline, which will soon add Astana, Istanbul, Athens, Larnaca and Chicago to its routes, said it has invested heavily to improve the quality of its services, including the opening of premium lounges at Abu Dhabi airport.

  • Etisalat in tie-up to boost e-mail security

    Etisalat has signed a partnership agreement with Symantec to provide MessageLabs e-mail security services to its business customers across the UAE. The agreement will provide customers with on-demand e-mail security services through the EmailDefend service based on a subscription model. As part of this service, Etisalat will be offering a range of security services, including anti-virus, anti-spam, image control and content control, with other services such as archiving and e-mail encryption.

  • Etisalat increases international roaming

    UAE telco Etisalat has added 520 telecommunication companies from across the globe to its international roaming partnerships. The extra partnerships extend its network coverage and lets customers use their mobiles when in 190 countries.

  • ExxonMobil to provide technology for Jubail plant

    The US' ExxonMobil has won the contract to provide the polyethylene technology for a new Saudi International Petrochemical Company (Sipchem) ethylene vinyl acetate plant at Jubail.

  • Eye-scan technology enters Jordan financial sector

    Jordan has become the first country to use eye-print technology in the financial sector, Imad Malhas, CEO of IrisGuard, told Jordan Times. Called the 'IrisGuard iBank Suite', the new technology uses cameras to obtain eye-print from customers and then process transactions accordingly. The new technology has been incorporated into Cairo Amman Bank's ATM machines and tellers' windows and has reduced transaction times from 6-9 minutes to 45 seconds.

  • Falcon receives Hermes helicopter

    Falcon Aviation Services (FAS) has received its first EC135 'Hélicoptère par Hermès' at a ceremony held in Abu Dhabi. The helicopter is a joint project between Eurocopter and luxury goods designer Hermès. 'This gives us the opportunity to offer a unique travelling experience to our customers,' said Salem Al Kayoumi, FAS's vice-chairman.

  • Fertil urea expansion bids due in June

    The three international firms competing for a contract to build a grassroots fertilisers complex at Ruwais will submit commercial bids in early June.

  • FIA, Europe Aviation ink deal for MRO centre

    Fujairah International Airport has signed an agreement with France's Europe Aviation, a provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul, to set up an aircraft maintenance facility at the Fujairah International Airport. Gregoire Lebigot, CEO of Europe Aviation, said the new facility would be the 9th for the company and that Dhs50m has been allocated for its construction, which is expected to be completed by mid-2010.

  • Firms line up for Bizerte power plant

    Developers submitted their prequalification documents for the Bizerte independent power project (IPP) in Tunisia on 30 April.

  • Firms set to bid for Abu Dhabi civil defence centre

    At least eight firms will bid for a contract to build a AED90m ($24.5m) civil defence training centre for Abu Dhabi’s interior ministry, according to contractors in the region.

  • Firms set to express interest in Louvre Abu Dhabi

    Abu Dhabi's Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) has invited firms to express interest in a contract to build the Louvre Abu Dhabi on Saadiyat island.

  • Firms submit bids for Abu Dhabi civil defence centre

    The Interior Ministry has received bids from at least five companies for a contract to build a AED90m ($24.m) training centre for civil defence in Abu Dhabi.

  • Firms submit bids for Dewa buildings deal

    Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) has accepted bids from four companies for a contract to build residential accommodation in the Jebel Ali area.

  • Firms submit bids for Hasik road project

    Oman's Supreme Council for Town Planning has received bids from six companies for a contract to build a coastal road leading east from Salalah to Hasik in the Dhofar governorate.

  • Firms submit bids for Jubail aromatics package

    Six firms have submitted bids for a $700m aromatics package on Saudi Aramco's $10bn Jubail export refinery.

  • Flydubai gets dedicated terminal zone

    Dubai Airports' CEO, Paul Griffiths has said budget airline Flydubai will have its own zone in the newly refurbished Terminal 2 from June 1, when it has its maiden flight. Although the terminal will not be exclusively for flydubai, the dedicated zone will help ease congestion, he said.

  • Flydubai receives AOC

    The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has issued the Air Operators Certificate to budget carrier, Flydubai, following its completion of a strict set of requirements laid down by the GCAA, the regulatory body responsible for ensuring safety and standards within the airline industry. The airline's first scheduled route, to Beirut, is scheduled to begin on June 1.

  • Flydubai receives first Boeing 737-800

    Dubai's first low-cost carrier, flydubai has received the first of 50 Boeing 737-800s on order. The airline expects delivery of five more aircraft in 2009, one this month, two in July, one in October and another in December. The carrier expects to add up to 16 new destinations by the end of the year. Gaith Al Gaith, flydubai's CEO, said that the $4bn funding for the 50 aircraft would be from the airline's own resources, in addition to local and international institutions. He added that to dat

  • Flydubai teams up with Emirates Post

    Flydubai, Dubai's first budget airline, has signed a deal with Emirates Post by which the latter's office network across the UAE will act as the carrier's selling agents, offering booking facilities, accepting payment for reservations made on-line and making or changing booking preferences. Customers now have the option to book their travel with Flydubai through its website (www.flydubai.com), its call centre (04 301 0800) or at their nearest Emirates Post. Flydubai will begin commercial flig

  • Four Points Bur Dubai set to renovate

    The Four Points by Sheraton Bur Dubai has announced renovation of its faclities, alloting Dhs22m investment made by hotel owner, The First Investor LLC. Th proprty is located on Khalid bin Walid Street, commonly known as Bank Street. From 15 May to 15 July 2009, the hotel will close all of its 125 guest rooms to facilitate the renovation works. The hotel is set to reopen by August.

  • Free parking at major Dubai Metro stations

    Dubai Metro commuters will be able to park their cars free of charge at the metro stations in Rashidiya, Al Qusais and Jumeirah Island. The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) said it hopes the 'park and ride' decision will encourage more use of the metro, once services start running. The first phase of the Dubai Metro is due to open on September 9 this year.

  • GAC Marine agrees logistics deal

    Ship management company Bernhard Schulte (BSM) has appointed GAC Marine Logistics (GML), a global ship spares logistics specialist, as one of its key partners to handle marine spares logistics. As per the contract, GML has been awarded the logistics services to and from Korea and the Middle East for delivery to BSM's vessels trading around the world.

  • Gas producers to hold meeting in Qatar

    Qatar will host a meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) in June as the group looks to nurture greater co-operation between member states.

  • Gas shortage forces Kuwait to shut Shuaiba plants

    Kuwait's Petroleum Industries Company (PIC) will shut its urea and ammonia plants at Shuaiba for a month starting in late May because it does not have enough gas.

  • Gasco sets deadlines for Ruwais deal

    Abu Dhabi Gas Industries (Gasco) has set deadlines for the four international firms bidding on a contract to upgrade the company's sulphur-handling facilities in Ruwais.

  • GCC hospitality sector on track for 2011 recovery

    Emil Rademeyer, directory of Proleads market intelligence research has said that he expects the stabilisation of the GCC hospitality market in 2010 and growth beyond in 2011, despite the global recession. Since 2003, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain had witnessed an increasing growth rate, while the UAE had seen a similar rate of growth until 2005 when it stabilised, he said. Rademeyer estimated the average occupancy of hotels in the UAE to be currently set at 50%, whereas prior to the slowdow

  • GCC hotel projects worth $140bn

    A new report has found that GCC countries are currently building 306 new hotels, with 108,600 rooms, worth in excess of $140bn. The study, by the Proleads research house, finds says 2009 will be a challenging year for the hotel industry in the region, but it projects that occupancy levels will pick up to 2008 levels by the end of 2010 and then accelerate with real growth by 2013.

  • GCC Monetary Council to be based in Riyadh

    The GCC Monetary Council, the likely precursor to a regional central bank, will be based in Riyadh, according to the secretary general of the GCC.

  • GE signs Omani gas turbine services agreement

    The US' GE Oil & Gas has signed a 16-year service agreement on Oman LNG's 12 gas turbines at the Qalhat complex in the northeast of the sultanate.

  • GEM takes delivery of vessel

    Gulf Energy Maritime (GEM) has taken delivery of its 12th vessel, Gulf Muttrah, a 47,000 dwt oil and chemical product tanker, built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard. Financing for the tanker was done by First Gulf Bank as part of a $90m term facility to finance the construction and purchase of two vessels, the second of which is due for delivery in May.

  • Germanischer Lloyd wins Emirates pipeline consultancy deal

    Germany’s Germanischer Lloyd (GL) has won a contract to provide risk management and technical assurance services on a major pipeline project connecting Abu Dhabi and Fujairah.

  • Global Chemicals wins Duqm plant deal

    Oman's Global Chemicals & Maintenance Systems has won a contract for the construction of a power plant in the Duqm area of the sultanate.

  • GlobalFoundries begins plant construction

    The $4.2bn GlobalFoundries joint venture between Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) and Advanced Technology Investment Co, a unit of Mubadala Development Co, has begun construction works on its new manufacturing facility coming up in Saratoga County, New York, which is expected to be operational by 2011. The new plant will provide wafers to companies worldwide. Mubadala has also invested $600m in an 8.1% stake in AMD.

  • Golden Systems relocates HQ

    Golden Systems Middle East has relocated its regional headquarters and operational facilities to its new 7,000 square metres, three-storey office building in Jebel Ali Free Zone, which houses its head office, service centre, production line and warehouse. Golden Systems has a portfolio of products from global vendors such as Logitech, Leadtek, Gigabyte Technology, Kaspersky, Kingmax, NVidia and AMD.

  • Groupe Omnium Nord Africain real estate revenues drop

    Groupe ONA (Omnium Nord Africain), the holding company for the business interests of Morocco’s royal family, has reported a 73 per cent drop in real estate revenues during the first quarter of 2009.

  • Gulf Air renews place on IATA safety registry

    Gulf Air has announced its successful completion of the IATA's Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), renewing its place on the IOSA Registry until 2011. The renewal comes as a result to conforming to more than 900 standards in eight operational areas, including flight operations, operational control and flight dispatch, aircraft engineering and maintenance, cabin operations, ground handling, cargo operations and operational security.

  • Gulf airlines face fines for not catering to special needs' clients

    Starting from Wednesday, all Middle East airlines flying to the US face fines of up to $27,500 per violation if they fail to comply with accessibility rules set by the US government for people with special needs, according to Dayton Lehman Jr, principal deputy assistant general counsel of the US Department of Transport, Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings. An example of one requirement is that 50% of all aircraft seats must have a movable armrest, reported Gulf News. US rules that would conf

  • Gulf cement prices to fall on oversupply

    Khaled Gahal Hegazy, VP of Egyptian cement trading company Hegazy has said that weak demand and large number of supply projects coming online by the end of the year will flood the market and drop prices by at least 20%. By 2011, Saudi Arabia would produce 11.5 million tonnes more cement than it needed, and Iran would have an excess of 20m tonnes, while the UAE would have 11.5m tonnes of oversupply.

  • Gulf Finance House reports $38m loss

    Bahrain's Gulf Finance House (GFH) made a $37.7m loss in the first quarter of 2009 after making writedowns of $43m.

  • Gulf loses $590m to software piracy

    GCC countries lost $590m to software piracy in 2008, a 48% jump from the previous year, according to the sixth annual BSA-IDC global software piracy study. Worldwide, losses touched $53bn in 2008, an 11% rise over the previous year and the first time they exceeded the $50bn level. Illegally-copied programmes represented 41% of global software sales, three percentage points more than in 2007.

  • Gulf projects 05 May 2009: Index falls 15.1 per cent

    The MEED Projects - CMI Index was revised on 5 May to exclude the value of on hold projects across the Gulf. This resulted in a 15.1 per cent fall in the value of the index in the week to 5 May.

  • Gulf projects 11 May 2009: Index falls 0.5 per cent

    In the week to 11 May, the MEED Projects - CMI index fell by 0.5 per cent. As of 5 May, MEED has begun tracking the value of projects on hold across the region.

  • Gulf Projects 18 May 2009: Index falls 0.5 per cent

    In the week ending 18 May, the MEED projects - CMI index fell another 0.5 per cent to $2.63 trillion. A total of $482bn worth of projects are currently on hold across the region.

  • Gulf Projects 25 May 2009: Index rises 0.9 per cent

    The MEED Projects - CMI index rose by 0.9 per cent in the week ending 26 May. The increase was driven by an 11 per cent rise in the value of projects planned and under way in Oman.

  • Gulfsands Petroleum starts Syrian oil well drilling

    The UK's Gulfsands Petroleum has started drilling the second of three development wells on the Khurbet East field in northeast Syria after completing a 3D seismic survey of an 850-square-kilometre area.

  • Hadco, Almarai agree share swap

    Saudi Arabia's Almarai Company and Hail Agricultural Development (Hadco) have said in a statement on the Saudi bourse they had agreed on a share swap deal, where Hadco shareholders will receive one share in Almarai in exchange for five shares in Hadco, in addition to 50 cents for each Hadco share. Khalid Al-Nasser, Almarai investor relations manager told Reuters the share swap decision will be finalized after the two companies hold general assemblies.

  • Hainan begins Dubai,Beijing route

    Sharaf Travel has announced that Hainan Airlines will launch its first direct flight connecting Beijing to Dubai, twice a week, from May 25 2009. Hainan is offering special introductory fares and promotions to celebrate the launch of these direct flights. The carrier has a fleet of Boeing 737 and 767 and Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft, and flies to over 90 cities in China and around the world.

  • Haya Water issues tenders for Darsait wastewater plant

    Haya Water has issued a tender for a consultancy contract on its planned Darsait wastewater treatment plant in Oman.

  • Heritage Oil makes Iraq oil discovery

    The UK's Heritage Oil has discovered up to 4.2 billion barrels of oil in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and expects to recover up to 3 billion barrels of crude following the completion of a test programme.

  • Hill International secures Bahrain airport work

    US-based Hill International has won a contract to provide project management services on the expansion of Bahrain International Airport (BIA) in Manama.

  • HP, Microsoft tie up in unified communications

    HP and Microsoft Corp. have announced a four-year strategic global initiative partnership to deliver an end-to-end unified communications and collaboration solutions. The two companies are investing an additional $180m in product development, professional services, as well as joint sales and marketing. The project aims to streamline communications across messaging, video and voice with connected applications and devices.

  • Ibn Majid to build bridge in Basra

    Iraq's Ibn Majid Company has won a contract to build a new bridge across the Shatt al-Arab waterway in southern Iraq.

  • Indago ceases operations after Oman oil exploration sale

    UK-based Indago Petroleum will stop operating as a company and return the business's capital to its shareholders following the sale of its remaining oil and gas interests in Oman.

  • Indian firm wins Abu Dhabi power transmission work

    India's KEC International has won a contract to build electricity transmission lines in Abu Dhabi.

  • Industries Qatar receives $55m as compensation

    Industries Qatar said the government has paid it QR200m ($55m) compensation for selling steel at a loss in the local market. The company said the claim represents compensation against price differentials that resulted from ceiling prices in the local market. The company has so far received QR1 billion from the government, compared with the total claim of QR1.8bn.

  • Inflation rises to 12.2 per cent in Egypt

    Egyptian inflation rose to 12.2 per cent in April from 11.6 per cent in the year to March 2009.

  • Intel delays debut of Core i5 platform

    Intel has postponed the debut of its new mainstream desktop PC platform, Lynnfield processors (tentatively Core i5) and 5-series chipsets, from July as originally scheduled, to early September 2009, according to digitimes.com. However, Core i5 processors will be available early for retail sale in late August, while P55-based motherboards will appear even sooner in mid-August.

  • Intel fined €1.06bn for anti-competitive practices

    Chip maker Intel has been fined €1.06bn for breaking European anti-competitive rules. The company was accused illegally trying to damage rival processor manufacturer AMD's business. The European Commission said that Intel, which has around an 80% share of the CPU market, broke competition rules by giving rebates to computer manufacturers Dell, Acer and Lenovo, NEC and HP in return for them buying most of the processors they require from Intel.

  • Intel to open nano tech facility in Saudi Arabia

    Intel has entered a joint venture with King Abdul Aziz City of Science and Technology (KACST) to set up the Center of Excellence in Nano-manufacturing Applications. It will open next year in Riyadh. KACST will provide funds for equipment, while Intel will steer research and provide guidance for students.

  • Intel's new chip set for 2010

    Intel Corp has announced its new chip design for larger server computers will debut in machines early 2010. The new chip from Intel will have as many as eight processors. Intel also said it will begin shipping the chips for four-way servers before the end of this year.

  • InterCon to open sixth Saudi Holiday Inn

    InterContinental Hotels Group and Al Hokair Group have signed an agreement to open their sixth 180-room Holiday Inn in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia. Due to open in July 2009, the new Holiday Inn Al-Khobar Corniche hotel will have two meeting rooms with a capacity of 120 people and a ballroom that can hold 800 people. The hotel will also have a coffee shop, operated by Coffee Shop Co., and a restaurant serving international cuisine.

  • International Petroleum Investment Company to raise $3.5bn

    Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) is planning to raise $3.5bn from the syndications market with two deals of one and two years in tenor.

  • Investment Dar defaults on $100m sukuk

    Kuwait's Investment Dar has defaulted on the repayment of a $100m sukuk, the company said.

  • Investors undervalue shares in Sabic

    Shares in Saudi Arabian petrochemicals giant Saudi Basic Industries Company (Sabic) are being undervalued by investors following confusion over the company's earnings in the first quarter of 2009, according to UK bank HSBC.

  • Iran awards Darkhovin drilling deal

    A subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has awarded a drilling contract to Iran's Oil Exploration Operations Company (OEOC) as part of its ongoing development of the Darkhovin oil field.

  • Iran issues tender for Reshadat oil field

    Iranian Offshore Oil Company (IOOC) has re-issued a tender for the provision of engineering, procurement and drilling services at its offshore Reshadat oil field in the Gulf.

  • Iran signs oil field deal with Belarus

    Iranian oil development firm Petropars has signed a deal with Belarus' state-run Belorusneft to carry out 3D seismic work on its Band-e-Karkheh field in the western province of Khuzestan.

  • Iran to produce Kish gas by 2011

    Iran's state-run Oil Engineering & Development Company (OEDC) will start producing 1 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) of gas from its Kish field by 2011.

  • Iranian central bank helps fund Belarusneft oil exploration

    The Central Bank of Iran will lend $212m to Belarus' state-run firm Belarusneft for the development of the Islamic republic's Jofeir oil field which lies near its border with Iraq.

  • Iranian minister calls for state funding in energy sector

    Iran's oil minister has called for the creation of a government-backed bank to facilitate investment in the country's struggling energy industry.

  • Iran's Gaz Port to be managed by private firm

    Gaz Port in the Iranian province of Golestan has been passed on to private management in a 50-year concession.

  • Iraq and Iran to increase transport co-operation

    Iraq and Iran have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase their co-operation in the transport sector.

  • Iraq appoints South Oil Company head

    Iraq's Oil Ministry has appointed Fayad Nema as the new director-general of the state run South Oil Company (SOC) after his predecessor Kifah Numan retired.

  • Iraq divides Missan province to kick-start projects

    Iraq will divide Missan province into five administrative districts making it easier to start key projects and oversee existing infrastructure work.

  • Iraq signs US military aircraft deal

    Iraq will buy four military transport aircraft from the US in a deal worth up to $292m.

  • J Ray McDermott awards Pearl deal to Geolab and Hallin

    Jebel Ali-based J Ray McDermott awarded a sub-contract to a joint venture of Italy's Geolab and the UK's Hallin for marine work on Qatar's $20bn Pearl gas-to-liquids (GTL) project.

  • Jacobs Zate wins Petro-Rabigh deal

    Jacobs Zate, the Saudi Arabian subsidiary of US engineering giant Jacobs Engineering, has secured a one-year $1.5m general engineering services (GES) contract for work at a major integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex at Rabigh.

  • Jazeera Airways adds four new routes

    Jazeera Airways has opened four new routes from Kuwait and Bahrain and increased the frequency of its routes from other hubs including Dubai. The Dubai-Kuwait service will now operate six times daily, while the Dubai-Bahrain route will now operate three times daily. Services to Cochin and Khartoum will no longer be available. The airline will also take delivery of two new Airbus A320s in the summer.

  • Jazeera Airways announces $3.5m quarterly loss

    Jazeera Airways recorded a net loss of KD1m ($3.5m) for the first quarter of 2009.

  • Jazeera Airways expands global network

    Jazeera Airways is adding four new international destinations to its network from 1 June.

  • Jazeera Airways to issue annual dividend and bonus

    Jazeera Airways will increase its share capital by 10 per cent and give the additional paper to its shareholders following the airline's surge in net profits last year.

  • Jazeera to reduce flights out of Dubai

    Kuwait's budget carrier Jazeera Airways will no longer operate flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Sana'a and Salalah non-stop from Dubai starting in June due to 'regulatory restrictions'. Travellers using the airline to travel to these destinations from the UAE will have to go via Kuwait due to 'changes in UAE regulation that restrict directional 5th freedom flying rights'. The 'fifth freedom' of air allows an airline to carry traffic between a second and a third country.

  • Jazeera ups Dubai flights

    Jazeera Airways has said in a statement that it will increase the frequency of its daily flight to Dubai to six as of June 1. The carrier's CEO, Steven Greenway has said that reservations on the Dubai-Kuwait flights can be made as of May 28, as part of the airline's summer schedule.

  • Jet Airways launches low-fare service

    India's Jet Airways has launched an all-economy low fare service called Jet Airways Konnect on some domestic routes. Company officials noted that Konnect was not a new airline. In fact, it could even cease to exist once demand for the regular Jet Airways service increases and the issue of low load factors becomes irrelevant, they said.

  • Jet plans four more Dubai-India routes

    India's largest private carrier, Jet Airways plans to launch four new routes from Dubai to Hyderabad, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Mangalore in India in the next three months. Abraham Joseph, the carrier's Senior General Manager Middle East and North Africa, told Emirates Business 24/7: "Talks are in process and we should be able to launch these routes in the next two to three months."

  • Jordan finalises $200m Disi Water loan

    Jordan has raised a $200m loan to complete the financing of its $1bn Disi Water project to ensure the long-term supply of drinking water to the capital Amman.

  • Jordan net IP costs to fall 15%

    Mickael Ghossein, CEO of the Jordan Telecom Group (JTG) has said that Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity costs for Internet Service Providers (ISP) will be reduced by 15% as of June 1st, the Jordan Times has reported. This reduction will decrease the cost of services to ISPs by 30%, and end-users should expect a drop in internet prices based on reductions by individual ISPs, he said. The 15% cut brings the total reduction since the beginning of 2007 to 70%, Ghossein said.

  • Jordan Phosphate profit up 256%

    Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (JPMC) has said in a statement that its after tax profit rose by 256.6% to JD31.1m during Q1 2009 compared to JD8.7m during the same period of last year, while sales rose to JD108.9m compared to JD95m during January-March 2008. The group's assets totalled JD560.3m at the end of March 2009 while its equity rights amounted to JD448.2m compared to JD417.1m at the end of last year.

  • Jordan to sign oil shale exploration deal with Shell

    Jordan's National Resources Authority (NRA) will sign a $540m deal with the UK/Dutch Shell Group on 17 May for deep oil shale exploration as the first part of a deal that could attract $50bn of investment to the country.

  • Jumeirah Group says hotel occupancy remains high

    Jumeirah Group is experiencing high occupancy levels at its hotels despite the economic downturn, but it has had to offer rate discounts at all its properties - with the exception of the Burj Al Arab in Dubai - to compete with companies that have slashed their rates, said Gerald Lawless, executive chairman of Jumeirah Group.

  • Jumeirah to operate Al Farida Al Ain hotel

    The Jumeirah Group has signed an agreement with Al Farida Investments to operate its latest luxury hotel development in Al Ain. The Dhs800m mixed-use retail and hospitality project will include a hotel with 220 guest rooms, lofts and chalets and four in-house restaurants.

  • Kingdom Hotel Investments sells Sharm el-Sheikh resort stake

    Kingdom Hotel Investments (KHI) has sold its stake in the Four Seasons Resort Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt for $70m.

  • Kurdistan Regional Government reaches oil compromise

    The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) says it has reached a compromise with Iraq's central government over exporting oil from its large fields.

  • Kuwait Airways fined $1m for unpaid contracts

    Kuwait Airways has lost its appeal against Philippine Airlines for the non-payment of passenger and cargo services dating back to 1995 and been ordered to pay over $1m by the Supreme Court of Philippines. The long-running battle stems from the signing of a deal by the governments of Kuwait and the Philippines, which granted exemptions to royalty payments, effective from the signature date. Kuwait Airways argued that the deal terminated the previous commercial agreement immediately, but the Su

  • Kuwait Airways to upgrade inflight enterntainment

    Kuwait Airways Corporation has launched 250 visual and audio entertainment options on its flights to and from New York as part of its plans to upgrade its in-flight entertainment package. The new service will be provided later on all flights to the United States and Europe.

  • Kuwait central bank sells $345m treasury bonds

    The Central Bank of Kuwait has sold KD100m ($345m) of one-year treasury bonds with a coupon of 2 per cent as part of the bank's measures to absorb the country's excess liquidity.

  • Kuwait Civil Aviation to develop poor weather system

    Kuwait's Directorate General of Civil Aviation has signed a memo of cooperation with the UK's National Air Traffic Services - which oversees aviation in the country - to develop aircraft communications for poor weather, poor visibility and in emergencies. The agreement also covers the expansion of Kuwait International Airport's capacity and developing the aviation information department.

  • Kuwait delays bids for Riqqa plant maintenance

    Kuwait's Public Works Ministry has delayed the bid deadline for a contract covering the operation and maintenance of the Riqqa wastewater treatment plant to 7 June from the original deadline of 24 May.

  • Kuwait finalises Shuaiba opening deadlines

    Kuwait Paraxylene Production Company (KPPC) will start production at its new petrochemicals plants at Shuaiba in the third quarter of 2009, the company's chairman said at a meeting on 24 May.

  • Kuwait Finance to create 'shipping fund'

    Cyprus-listed SFS Group and Kuwait Finance House (KFH) will establish a Shariah-compliant shipping fund which aims to raise $150m to invest directly in 'high quality and modern vessels' with a preference for offshore tonnage such as offshore supply vessels and platform supply vessels. All investments will require the prior approval of KFH's Shariah committee. The fund will be established before the end of 2009, and will be managed by an equally-owned company acting as the general partner base

  • Kuwait Oil Company delays manifold bid deadline

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has delayed the bid deadline for a KD3m ($10m) contract to build a crude oil manifold in west Kuwait by two weeks.

  • Kuwait Oil Company signs deal with Det Norske Veritas

    Norway's Det Norske Veritas (DNV) has won a consultancy contract in Kuwait worth more than $22m, according to the state-owned Kuwait Oil Company (KOC).

  • Kuwait shuns international oil companies

    Kuwait will keep international oil companies (IOCs) out of the future development of its oil and gas sector, according to an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report.

  • Kuwait to issue tender documents for gas booster station

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) plans to issue tender documents for a major gas booster station in west Kuwait before the end of May.

  • Kuwait to stop production at Shuaiba fertiliser plants

    Kuwait's state petrochemicals company has confirmed that it will halt production at its fertiliser plants in Shuaiba in June for a routine maintenance programme.

  • Kuwaiti firm to award deals for Bahraini steel plant

    A Kuwaiti company will award engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contracts for an estimated $1.4bn integrated steel plant at Hidd in Bahrain in the third quarter of 2009.

  • Kuwaiti inflation falls to 6.8 per cent

    Inflation in Kuwait has fallen to 6.8 per cent in January after peaking in August 2008, as food and rental prices have started to fall. Inflation is now at its lowest level for 14 months.

  • Kuwaiti prime minister set to appoint cabinet

    Kuwait's newly reinstated Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohamed al-Ahmed al-Sabah has until 31 May to appoint a new cabinet, according to sources close to the country's government.

  • Landmark launches hotel division

    Michael A Weyland, General Manager of Landmark Group's hotel division has said that the group plans to launch a new brand in the budget segment of three-star properties called Citymax Hotels. The group will start by opening two hotels in Dubai and one in Sharjah before the end of the year, at an expected cost of Dhs425m which it wants to recover during the first four years of operations. 'The three proposed hotels will have a total of 1,331 no-frills rooms, but will be equipped with all major

  • Larsen & Toubro wins Omani power contracts

    India's Larsen & Toubro has won three contracts worth RO40.2m ($105m) in Oman for electricity transmission and tourism infrastructure work.

  • Lexmark launches monochrome printers

    Lexmark has launched a range of monochrome laser printers and multifunction products. The 650 family includes a number of modes for office use, such as label printing, two-sided printing to reduce paper usage, Eco-Mode to reduce power consumption and Quiet Mode to minimise noise. The range also has security features such as PIN authentication, disk encryption and wiping.

  • Libya and Ukraine sign nuclear power deal

    The Ukraine and Libya have signed an agreement to share civilian nuclear technology.

  • Libya renegotiates international oil and gas deals

    Libya's National Oil Company (NOC) has renegotiated the terms of its production sharing agreements for various oil and gas concessions with three international companies. The deal will give the North African state a greater share in the revenues they generate.

  • Local firm bids low for Kuwait water injection project

    Kuwait's Finesco International General Trading & Contracting Company is the front runner for a contract to build and maintain a water-injection plant in north Kuwait after submitting a bid 50 per cent cheaper than its nearest competitors.

  • Local firms bid low for Kuwait power supply installation

    Kuwaiti firms have submitted the lowest bid prices for a Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) contract to install power supply and distribution networks at two oil and gas fields in western Kuwait.

  • Logicom named as regional HP distributor

    Logicom has announced it has signed an agreement with Hewlett-Packard by which it is authorised to carry all major product lines from HP's PC, printing and storage units in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and the UAE. Logicom has offices in Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

  • Lufthansa bids low for Muscat airport work

    Lufthansa Consulting is the lowest bidder for a contract to design and supervise the construction of cargo facilities at the new Muscat International airport.

  • Lukoil holds talks with Iraq over West Qurna 2

    Russia's Lukoil hopes to resurrect a deal with Iraq's Oil Ministry to develop phase two of its West Qurna 2 oil field following a visit from the company's chief executive officer to Baghdad on 26 May.

  • Maaden may offer 49% stake in smelter

    Abdallah Dabbagh, CEO of Saudi Arabian Mining (Maaden), told Bloomberg his company is in talks with Dubai Aluminium to offer as much as a 49% stake in its smelter, after Rio Tinto Group, the world's second-largest iron ore producer, abandoned a joint venture with the firm. Companies such as Rio are shelving projects amid falling aluminum prices, as demand for products such as cars and planes slumps, reported the news service.

  • Mace wins first major project in Syria

    UK-based Mace International has been awarded its first major project and cost management contract in Syria.

  • Makkah rail project approved

    Saudi Arabia has approved a project to build a 4.5km, dual track Light Rail service, which will be able to carry 60,000 passengers per hour, in Makkah. Designed to ease traffic congestion, it is part of the wider SR7.5bn Darb Al-Mashair project, which will also see two 50-storey towers, a shopping mall, hotels and car parking built.

  • Man AG receives 386 Saudi truck order

    German group Man AG has said in a statement that Saudi Arabian building contractor Mohammed A. Al Swailem Co. has ordered 300 MAN TGA-WW 40.400 6x4 tippers and water tankers, to be delivered as completely knocked down kits to be assembled in the new MAN plant in Jeddah. The group has also ordered 60 TGAWW 41.400 8x4 complete vehicles with 12-cubic-metre mixer bodies, and 26 MAN TGM all-wheel drive vehicles for construction site operation.

  • Marriott to run Emirates' Park Towers hotel

    Marriott International has been appointed operator of Emirates' Park Towers hotel in Dubai. The 1,614-room twin-tower hotel and apartments is being built close to the Business Bay district and once opened, will fall under the JW Marriott Marquis luxury brand. The first 807-room tower is scheduled to open in 2011, with the second tower being ready in 2013.

  • Masdar delays tender for Abu Dhabi headquarters

    Abu Dhabi real estate developer Masdar has extended the closing date for tenders for its headquarters building at Masdar City until 31 May.

  • Masdar invites firms to bid for institute work

    Abu Dhabi developer Masdar has invited prequalified contractors to bid for the next phase of its Masdar Institute of Science & Technology.

  • Media Production City to sell Movenpick

    The Egyptian Media Production City (EMPC) has commissioned a consulting firm to promote the sale of its Movenpick Hotel, and distribute the tender document among a number of senior Egyptian and Arab investors. Sayed Helmi, head of the EMPC, confirmed the firm's intention to sell the hotel. 'For a long time we have been making the studies necessary to complete the sale at the appropriate time in order to provide quick liquidity and maximize returns in a way matching with the EMPC investments,'

  • Mena fertiliser capacity to hit 70 million tonnes

    A report by Kuwait-based Global Investment House has predicted that fertiliser capacity in the Mena region will increase to 70 million tonnes in 2012 from 46 million tonnes last year, and that the "outlook remains positive on the back of sound fundamentals and better cost control measures". The report forecasts an addition of 9.5 million tonnes and 8.9 million tonnes would be built up in terms of capacity in urea and ammonia up to 2012, while sulphuric acid and diammonium phosphate will incre

  • Metal fabrication plant to launch in Oman

    Construct Altayf, a new plant specialising in metal engineering and truss structural manufacturing, will be opened in Oman's Buraimi Industrial Estate next month. The facility with a capital investment of RO850000 is the first of its kind in the Gulf region with a capability to fabricate truss structures for buses, and the second largest of its kind in the Sultanate in terms of its capacity of 500 tons per month of ironware.

  • MGM Grand to manage three Dubai hotels

    Las Vegas-based leisure operator MGM Mirage says it will run three hotels in the Dubai Pearl development near Palm Jumeirah, reported The National. Pearl Dubai, the developer of the project, will bankroll and build a 250-room Bellagio hotel, a 350-room MGM Grand hotel, and a Skylofts hotel, while MGM Mirage Hospitality will manage the properties. No casinos will be operated at the hotels.

  • Microsoft blocks Messenger access to Syria and Iran

    Microsoft has confirmed that it is blocking Windows Live Messenger access to users in Syria and Iran in the Middle East, as well as Sudan, Cuba and North Korea. It cited that they are "subject to United States sanctions" without providing further details. Industry analysts questioned the timing behind move however, pointing out that many of these sanctions date back eight years or more.

  • Microsoft releases patch for PowerPoint flaw

    Microsoft has released a security update to fix at least 14 critical vulnerabilities in numerous versions of Microsoft Office PowerPoint, including PowerPoint 2000, PowerPoint XP, PowerPoint 2003 and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2004 for Mac, which allowed remote hackers to execute malicious code on users' computers to infect systems and steal data. Security experts recommend that users immediately apply the PowerPoint patch to prevent their systems from becoming infected remotely.

  • Microsoft starts second round of job cuts

    Microsoft has notified the second round of its employees in the US and internationally, who are affected by job cuts. The group is aiming to lose 5,000 positions as it brings costs into line with the economic downturn, the Wall Street Journal has reported. April saw the IT giant register its first fall in quarterly revenue since it became a public company in 1986.

  • Microsoft to unveil new search engine

    Microsoft is expected to demonstrate a new version of its Internet search engine next week at a technology conference in California. The new search engine aims to better organize search results for consumers to minimize the amount of time they spend clicking around Web pages looking for information.

  • Middle East ready for technology leaps

    Middle East technology innovation is one the best routes out of the current economic crisis, panelists said during a session at the World Economic Forum in Jordan. However, while they felt smart use of technology would help countries, education first needs to be improved. Roland Berger, chaired professor in business and technology at Insead in France, pointed to the recent Insead and WEF Global Information Technology Report, saying the region is heading in the right direction. "The Middle Eas

  • Mideast airlines see 11.2% rise in demand

    Airlines in the Middle East achieved 11.2% demand growth in April 2009, compared to a 3.1% decline in passenger demand worldwide, according to the latest figures from International Air Transport Association (IATA). The only other region in the world to witness positive growth was Latin America, where carriers saw demand rise by 7.5% in April. IATA said April's 3.1% passenger demand drop worldwide was a 'clear improvement' compared to the 11.1% fall in March, but it warned that the numbers wer

  • Mindware appointed Huawei Symantec distributor

    IT distributor Mindware has been appointed an authorised distributor for Huawei Symantec products in the Middle East. Headquartered in China, the company is a joint venture by Huawei and Symantec, focusing on network security and storage.

  • Mobily, Bayanat launch broadband for businesses

    Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) has announced that it has launched competitively priced data solutions for businesses with its data services subsidiary, Bayanat. The packages are designed, with WiMax support and HSDPA technology, to cover the broadband needs and requirements of businesses. 'We are committed to the business sector, so we took the initiative to keep this vital sector constantly in touch,' said David Murphy, Mobily's marketing chief.

  • Morocco to buy $142m jet for king

    The Royal Moroccan Air Force will buy a modified Gulfstream jet to serve as dedicated air transport for King Mohammed VI.

  • Mott MacDonald wins chemical storage contract

    Dubai-based Solvochem has appointed Mott MacDonald to provide conceptual design, feasibility assessments, engineering services as well as assistance with tendering and construction management on the expansion of the existing chemical storage terminal at Jebel Ali Free Zone, which includes construction of additional 1,350m2 bulk storage and warehouse facilities. The project is due for completion by the 2nd quarter of 2010.

  • Mowasalat hires duped Filipino drivers

    Qatar's public transportation company Mowasalat has hired 36 of the 137 Filipino bus drivers stranded in Dubai, who were reportedly duped by a recruitment agency and given bogus jobs, according to the Philippine Department of Labour and Employment. Emirates Flight Catering is also hiring 44 of the drivers, and intends to hire 20 more of them, The Peninsula has reported.

  • Mubadala bond subscription attracts $9bn

    Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Development Company has attracted more than $9bn worth of offers from investors for its $1.75bn bond deal.

  • Muharraq tender due before end of May

    Bahrain's Tender Board has approved the request for proposals for the long-delayed Muharraq wastewater project and will issue it in the last week of May.

  • Nakheel Hotels 'focus on survival'

    Joe Sita, Nakheel Hotels chief executive officer has told the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference that the company is not looking at making new investments this year in order to conserve cash in hand. 'This year is all about survival,' Sita said. 'We are not out in the market [for new investments]. We are preserving cash.'

  • Nakheel invites interest in Jumeirah Heights' roads

    Nakheel has invited contractors to express interest in a contract to build roads and other associated infrastructure at its Jumeirah Heights development in the Jebel Ali area of Dubai.

  • Nakheel receives government funds

    Nakheel confirmed it has started to receive government funds to help it meet financial obligations.

  • Nakheel restructures Jumeirah Golf Estates wastewater deal

    UAE developer Nakheel has restructured an estimated AED3bn ($817m) contract to build a sewage treatment plant (STP) at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

  • Nakilat closes $1bn ship financing deal

    Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) has closed a $1bn ship financing deal, which was oversubscribed.

  • Nas Air plans to expand globally

    Nas Air has announced it is adding six new destinations to the airline's international network before the end of June, with further expansion to follow during the second half of 2009.

  • Nasair increases Jeddah flights

    Saudi Arabia's budget airline Nasair has announced upgraded its flights from Jeddah to Kuwait, Damascus and Latakia starting 14th May. The airline is now flying twice a week to the said cities, in addition to weekly two flights operating between Riyadh and Kuwait and between Riyadh and Damascus.Flights between Jeddah and Kuwait operate on Thursdays and Sundays, but effective 1st July will become Thursdays and Saturdays.

  • National Air Services has no plans to close Net Jets

    National Air Services (NAS) says it has no plans to sell or wind up its private jet business, Net Jets Middle East (NJME), despite financial difficulties that have left the company struggling to pay its employees.

  • National Bank of Kuwait predicts budget surplus

    Kuwait is headed towards a budget surplus in its current financial year, even though the collapse in the price of oil has caused the country’s exports to plummet.

  • National Marine to issue convertible bonds

    UAE-based National Marine Dredging has announced that it plans to issue Dhs391.5m ($107m) in convertible bonds at Dhs7.83 each, without interest. The issue is subject to shareholder approval.

  • No major changes in Kuwaiti cabinet

    Kuwait's returning Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Ahmed al-Sabah has appointed a new cabinet with key posts left unchanged from the executive which resigned in March, leading to fears that political deadlock in the country may continue.

  • Obama approves Emirates nuclear deal

    US President Barack Obama has approved a proposed nuclear co-operation agreement between the US and UAE.

  • Obama set to square up to Netanyahu

    President Barack Obama is preparing to put the question to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Israeli leader will need to think before he speaks.

  • Oil price higher after Opec keeps production stable

    Oil prices reached six-month highs on 28 May after the international oil cartel Opec decided to keep its production quotas stable.

  • Oil price reaches $57 as Opec production increases

    The price of crude oil hit $60 a barrel in the US before falling to about $57 a barrel in the week ended 14 May, as Opec production rose and US inventory levels fell in a reversal of recent roles.

  • Oil price stabilises after US supply disruptions

    Crude oil prices returned to six-month highs during the week ended 21 May, with the US’ benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stabilising above $60 a barrel following news of supply disruptions in the US.

  • Oman Air unveils new check-in time

    Oman Air has announced the implementation of a new check-in time to help ensure punctual flight departures for all of its flights from Muscat, from June 1st. The airline said it will close check-in desks an hour before the scheduled departure time, while boarding gates will open 70 minutes prior to flights' departure time and close 15 minutes before departure. Passengers checking in online can do so 24 hours before their departure time at the earliest and three hours before at the latest.

  • Oman Cement to borrow $52m from Bank Sohar

    Oman Cement has announced plans to borrow 20 million rials ($52m) from Bank Sohar to help finance a project to double its clinker production capacity. The company plans to spend $162m to raise its clinker production capacity to 2.4 million tons a year from 1.2 million tons, reported Bloomberg.

  • Oman inks Switch network deal

    The Central Bank of Oman has signed an agreement with Industrial Management Technology & Contracting (IMTAC), for the implementation and commissioning of an integrated National ATM/POS Switch Network. The scope of the agreement with IMTAC is to replace and unify the current Oman-Switch Network with a state-of-the-art switch network based on world-class ACI's BASE24-eps technology and on Hewlett-Packard's Integrity Non-stop infrastructure.

  • Oman invites firms to bid for Hasik work

    Oman’s Supreme Council for Tower Planning has invited international and first-rate local contractors to bid for two infrastructure contracts in Dhofar governorate near to Salalah.

  • Oman's Barka 3 and Sohar 2 tender due in June

    Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) plans to issue a request for proposals for its Barka 3 and Sohar 2 independent power projects (IPP) on 13 June.

  • Omniyat approaches contractors for the Octavian

    Dubai-based developer Omniyat Properties has invited selected contractors to express interest in the main construction contract for the Octavian project at Business Bay.

  • Opec cuts cost Chevron 50,000 barrels a day in oil production

    Opec production quota cuts cost US energy major Chevron 50,000 barrels a day (b/d) in production during the first quarter of 2009, although the company's production levels increased 64,000 year-on-year.

  • Opec fails to limit crude production

    The Opec countries increased their production of crude oil in April for the first time in nine months, as the 12-member cartel failed to limit production to agreed quotas.

  • Orascom bids low for New Cairo wastewater project

    A team of Egypt's Orascom Construction Industries and Spain's Aqualia is the low bidder for a contract to build a wastewater treatment plant in New Cairo.

  • Orascom Construction profits down 77 per cent

    Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) has reported a 77 per cent decline in net profits in the first three months of 2009.

  • Orascom prices New Cairo wastewater plant at $459m

    Egypt's Orascom Construction Industries says its joint venture with Spain's Aqualia was the low bidder for the New Cairo wastewater treatment plant.

  • Orascom secures Cairo Festival City deal

    A joint venture of the UAE/UK's Al-Futtaim Carillion and Egypt's Orascom Construction Industries has won a $340m contract to build the Cairo Festival City (CFC) retail centre.

  • Orascom to sell ammonium sulphate

    Egypt's Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) has said in a statement that it has signed an agreement with the Egyptian Financial and Industrial Corporation to manufacture and sell 300,000 tonnes of ammonium sulphate per year. An OCI spokesman said profits would be split based on the weighted price and percentage of each company's ingredient in the finished product, which for ammonia is 26%.

  • Orascom wins El-Merk infrastructure work

    Egypt's Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) has won $280m of contracts for infrastructure work at the $3.8bn El-Merk oil and gas production hub in Algeria.

  • Palestinian government revenues fall 5.4 per cent

    Palestinian government revenues were $316.6m during the first quarter of 2009, a fall of 5.4 per cent from the same period a year ago.

  • Palestinian unemployment decreases

    Unemployment in the West Bank and Gaza dipped by 0.6 percentage points during the first quarter of 2009, but it remains high among young Palestinians.

  • Palestinian unemployment falls to 26 per cent

    Palestinian unemployment has fallen to 26 per cent, down from 27.9 per cent at the end of 2007.

  • Palm Jumeirah Monorail begins operations

    The Palm Monorail, connecting the Palm Jumeirah with the Dubai shore, is now officially open. The monorail is now running four trains between the Gateway Towers and Atlantis stations, with a capacity of 2,400 passengers per hour per direction in four separate trains, each made up of three cars. The service runs from 8:00am to 10:00pm daily with tickets costing Dhs15 for a single journey and Dhs25 for a round trip. The frequency will be increased to a total of nine trains per hour with nine ve

  • Paradigm Earth Sciences wins Kuwaiti seismic work

    Amsterdam-based Paradigm Earth Sciences has won a KD2m ($6.9m) contract to provide seismic data processing services to state energy giant Kuwait Oil Company (KOC).

  • Petroceltic starts Algerian drilling exploration

    Ireland-based oil and gas company Petroceltic International has started a drilling programme at its Isarene concession in northeast Algeria.

  • Petrovietnam tenders Iran oil field deal

    Vietnam's state-run Petrovietnam Exploration Production Corporation has issued a tender for a 2D-seismic survey covering its Danan oil block located northwest of Ahwaz in Iran.

  • Plexus wins BP Egypt gas exploration work

    UK engineering services firm Plexus Holdings has won a $2.5m contract extension from BP Egypt for the supply of wellhead systems and ongoing support on the company's gas exploration efforts in its Nile Delta concession.

  • Pluto unveils new operations structure

    IT distributor Pluto has announced its new brand identity and operations structure for the region, whereby Pluto will act as the parent company for subsidiaries that include Pluto Channel and Pluto Games, according to Emirates Business. 'In the region, we were previously known as Pluto Games and as our network is growing and product portfolio increasing outside gaming, the Pluto entity was formed,' said Rami El Hussein, Pluto's Managing Director.

  • Port Sultan Qaboos inks deal for upgrade

    Port Sultan Qaboos in Oman has signed a $3.9m deal with Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery to design, manufacture, supply and install rubber-tyred gantry cranes and spare parts at the port. The upgrade, which is scheduled for delivery in Q1 2010, is aimed at improving throughput at the facility.

  • Poverty in Iraq reaches 23 per cent

    About 23 per cent of the Iraqi population were stuck in poverty in 2007, according to a new report.

  • Premier Inn opens second hotel in Dubai

    Premier Inn has opened its second hotel in Dubai at Dubai Silicon Oasis. Owned by Whitbread, Premier Inn operates in Dubai under a joint venture with Emirates Group and entered the market a year ago with the opening of its first hotel in Dubai Investment Park. The new Dubai Silicon Oasis property is the first of two openings planned for this year, the other being at Dubai International Airport.

  • Premium air travel sector struggles

    The first and business class air travel market in the Middle East continued to struggle during March, with passenger numbers down 7.7 per cent compared with the same month in 2008.

  • Property prices stabilise in Dubai and Abu Dhabi

    Property prices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi have stabilised and started to rise, although they are still trading at 23 per cent below their September 2008 peak according to research from HSBC.

  • Prysmian wins Qatar transmission contract

    Italy's Prysmian Cables & Systems has won a Eu47m ($64m) contract as part of an extension to phase eight of Qatar's electricity transmission network expansion.

  • Qatar able to launch low-cost carrier

    Qatar Airways chief executive officer Akbar Al Baker has said that the carrier has 'a complete structure in place' to launch a budget airline within 90 days if the carrier's market share is eroded by any competitor, claiming to have already flown a low cost plane in the guise of a 'full-service' plane. Though no names were mentioned the statement is believed to be a reference to the launch of Emirates-backed FlyDubai.

  • Qatar Airways denies selective overcharging

    Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker has dismissed as "baseless" reports suggesting that tickets for fellow nationals are priced higher. "We don't have any special prices for certain nationalities because that would go against all local and international laws and customs" Al Baker told the Peninsula.

  • Qatar Airways plans $1bn expansion at airport

    Qatar Airways plans to invest $1bn on infrastructure expansion at Doha International Airport to cope with rising passenger traffic and fleet size until the new airport opens in 2012, reported The Peninsula. The plan includes the increasing the seating capacity of the airline's Premium Terminal to 570, in addition to increasing the number of shower rooms, buffet and dining areas and an almost doubled duty free space. The airline has also announced that over the next 10 months it will add six

  • Qatar Airways seeks compensation from Boeing

    Qatar Airways is continuing to seek compensation from Boeing for the late delivery of its 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

  • Qatar Airways to continue expansion

    Qatar Airways Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker has said that the airline would purchase more aircrafts at the Paris Air Show next month. Qatar is also expecting its first delivery of Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets in 2011, over a year later than originally scheduled, which according to its contract with Boeing makes it eligible for compensation. The carrier currently has 200 planes on order in the long term.

  • Qatar Airways to fly daily to Australia

    Qatar Airways has announced it is launching daily service from Doha to Sydney and Melbourne starting this summer, as it awaits approval from regulators, The Peninsula has reported. The airline is optimistic about its plans as CEO Akbar Al Baker was quoted saying, "In 2009 while airlines are shrinking, parking airplanes, reducing frequencies and networks, we are doing exactly the opposite."

  • Qatar inflation falls

    The consumer price index (CPI) in Qatar, a measure of inflation, fell during the first three months of the year.

  • Qatar signs deal for new luxury hotel in Cuba

    Qatari Diar and Cuba's Gran Caribe have signed an agreement to build a $75m 250-room luxury hotel and 60 luxury villas on Cuba's Cayo Largo Island. Construction of the project, which could expand to 450 rooms, will begin next year with the aim of opening in 2012.

  • Qatar to create government network

    Qatar's Supreme Council for Information and Communication Technology (ictQatar) has announced it is creating a secure Government Network to address the need for a safe and reliable data exchange between government agencies, businesses and citizens. The network will primarily benefit the health and education sectors, where information exchange will be much faster and more secure. Many of the e-government services currently available through Hukoomi and other government websites, will be hosted

  • Qatar to need 1,200 new pilots

    Qatar will need 1,200 pilots by 2013, making the demand for commercial pilots according to Amit Agarwal, Chief Executive Officer of US-based Supreme Aviation Worldwide, who was speaking at a seminar in Doha. Qatar airways is expecting delivery of an additional 182 aircraft by 2013. Other factors contributing to the increasing demand include the surfacing of new airlines, domestic airlines going international and regional airlines going domestic

  • Qatargas awards Ras Laffan work to Kentz Group

    Qatargas has awarded a contract to the UK's Kentz Group for electrical, instrumentation and telecommunications work on a gas-loading facility at Ras Laffan.

  • Qatargas delays production at Laffan refinery

    Qatargas will start production at its 146,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Laffan condensate refinery by the end of June, a delay from its original deadline of the fourth quarter of 2008.

  • Qatargas delivers gas to UK terminal

    Qatargas has delivered its first gas to the South Hook liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in south Wales as part of a deal that will result in the state-run firm supplying up to 20 per cent of the UK's peak gas requirements.

  • Qatargas sets deadline for gas maintenance bids

    Qatar Liquefied Gas Company (Qatargas) has set a 30 September deadline for international firms to submit commercial bids for its $1.2bn plateau maintenance project.

  • QInvest buys stake in Panmure Gordon

    Qatar investment bank QInvest has purchased a 44 per cent stake in UK stockbroker Panmure Gordon & Company.

  • Qtel announces bond roadshow

    Qtel has announced an investor roadshow on 24 May for its syndication of a $1.5bn bond issue.

  • RAK Airways ends service

    Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, has told Emirates Business that RAK Airways is not in service anymore, and it is working on a plan regarding its future. 'In my opinion, the commercial benefits were not there and there was no point keeping it in business,' said Sheikh Saud.

  • Ramada to open two hotels in Middle East

    Ramada Worldwide, a member of the Wyndahm Hotel Group, has announced plans to open two new hotels in the Middle East.

  • RasGas awards maintenance deal to Transfied Worley Trags

    Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company (RasGas) has awarded a $100m two-year contract extension to the local/Australian Transfield Worley Trags joint venture for maintenance and shutdown work.

  • RasGas delivers liquefied gas to Turkey

    Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company (RasGas) has delivered its first spot cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Turkey.

  • Rating agency downgrades Bahraini bank

    Bahrain-based The International Banking Corporation (TIBC) has been downgraded by US rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) because it failed to repay some of its bank debt.

  • Ratings agency raises concerns over Al-Futtaim Group

    US ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has put the A rating of Arab Orient Insurance on negative creditwatch because of its parent company's exposure to Dubai.

  • Regional fertilisers firms' profits rise 98 per cent

    Net profits at listed fertilisers companies in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region rose 97.7 per cent in 2008 despite suffering losses totalling $20.5m in the fourth quarter of the year, according to a report by analysts at Kuwait's Global Investment House (GIH).

  • Regional passenger traffic rises

    Air passenger traffic in the Middle East and North Africa increased sharply during March, but it fell within the Arabian Peninsula.

  • Regulator plans to open Jeddah airport terminal early

    Saudi Arabia's aviation regulator hopes to cut up to a year off the construction time of the new Jeddah airport.

  • Riyadh seeks to double employment in tourism

    The Saudi Commission for Tourism & Antiquity (SCTA) has said that its plans for the strategic development of the kingdom's tourism sector will create 900,000 new jobs for Saudis by 2020, almost doubling the number of people working in the industry. The kingdom's tourism sector currently employs an estimated 1.1 million people.

  • RJ considers action over Dreamliner delay

    Royal Jordanian airline is considering launching a compensation plan against Boeing, after its orders for eight 787 Dreamliners was pushed back by three years. The planes were originally scheduled for delivery from the fourth quarter of 2010. Samer Majali, CEO of the airline, said it is working with Boeing to mitigate the impact of the delay, which has hit RJ's plans.

  • Rotana opens Syria property

    Rotana Hotels executive VP and CEO, Imad Elias has announced the opening of the company's first property in Syria; the five-star Afamia Rotana Resort in resort destination Latakia. Currently in soft opening, the 246-room hotel features 14 beach cabins, a 500-head capacity ballroom and conference room for up to 350 people, a private beach with marina, and five food and beverage outlets.

  • Royal Jordanian adds flights for summer

    Royal Jordanian Airlines has announced that it is boosting flight frequencies on several routes during the summer period. The carrier said it is increasing services to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Jeddah and Bahrain in June to meet rising demand for travel between Amman and these cities. The airline also said it is increasing its daily flights to Beirut to four and weekly operations between Amman and Lebanon's capital to 28.

  • Royal Jordanian inks deal with MK airlines

    Royal Jordanian has signed an agreement with Belgian air cargo firm MK Airlines to jointly develop air freight services through Jordan and the Levant region. The two companies aim to improve fleet utilization by complementing each other's route networks, air freight handling equipments and mutual expertise. The companies will also be working towards feeding the capacity of RJ's Airbus A310s and MK Airlines' Boeing 747s and B767s, optimizing costs through joint utilization of each company's fa

  • Royal Jordanian Q1 losses deepen

    First quarter losses at Royal Jordanian have deepened as a result of declining passenger numbers and less freight being carried. RJ's net loss has almost doubled to JD8.5m ($12 million) in the first quarter of 2009 compared to JD4.4m in 2008, while revenue fell by 11% to nearly JD124m, compared to JD138m a year earlier. The fall in passenger numbers, which dropped from 553,000 in Q1 2008 to 491,000, was accompanied by a 5% decline in revenue per passenger, said Samer Al Majali, Royal Jordani

  • RTA endorses Mirdiff City Centre bridges

    The Roads and Transport Authority has endorsed the award of a contract to construct Mirdiff City Center-Bound Bridges to be borne by Majid Al Futtaim Co. The Dhs184m 3-lane bridge project aims to provide entry and exit points to Mirdiff City Center from from Rashidiya, and another bridge to serve traffic bound from Tripoli Road.

  • Sabic and Sipchem sign memorandum for $4bn of projects

    Petrochemicals producer Saudi Basic Industries Company (Sabic) and Saudi International Petrochemical Company (Sipchem) have signed a memorandum of understanding to work together on $4bn of new projects using Sipchem's government allocation of feedstock ethane.

  • Sabic rated 'overweight' by Morgan Stanley

    Saudi Basic Industries, the world's largest chemical maker, has been rated 'overweight' in new coverage at Morgan Stanley. The company is in a 'strategically advantaged cost position', Morgan Stanley said, thanks to the fact that it enjoys low, long-term contract prices on key raw materials through Saudi Aramco. Morgan Stanley set a price estimate of 88 riyals on the company's shares, which closed at 63.75 yesterday.

  • Safwan set to begin Kuwait sulphur production

    Kuwait's Safwan Petroleum Technologies Company (Spetco) will start up the sulphur-recovery unit at its 50,000 barrel a day (b/d) early production facility in north Kuwait before the end of May.

  • Saipem wins $268m Arzew export terminal contract

    Italy's Saipem has won a $268m contract to build a new marine export terminal in Algeria.

  • Salalah Port profits down 81%

    Oman's Salalah Port Services has blamed financing costs linked to the ongoing expansion of the port, as well as the slowdown in global trade, for an 81% drop in Q1 profits to OR300,000 ($780,000), down from OR1.5m during the same period in 2008, MEED has reported. Quarterly net financing costs doubled to OR548,000 as it took on new loans to fund extra capacity.

  • Salalah port profits drop 81 per cent

    The Port of Salalah had an 81 per cent slump in first-quarter profits to OR300,000 ($780,000), down from OR1.5m during the same period in 2008.

  • Sama assets fall $11bn

    The assets of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama) have fallen for the fourth month in a row, declining 2.8 per cent in March, or $11bn.

  • Sama completes management reshuffle

    Sama has completed a reshuffle of its senior management in an attempt to restore stability to the privately owned airline after a turbulent winter.

  • Sama secures cash injection

    Saudi budget airline Sama has secured a SR50m ($13m) cash injection from the company's shareholders and completed the reshuffle of its senior management. The money will be used to help stabilise the business until the busier summer season boosts revenues and came as Kevin Steele was appointed as acting CCO. The management reshuffle began last December, when Bruce Ashby replaced Andrew Cowen as CEO, followed in early 2009 by Yasser Sindi taking over from Caroline Bell as CFO.

  • Samsung bids low for Skikda refinery upgrade

    South Korea's Samsung Engineering is the frontrunner to win a contract to upgrade Algeria's Skikda refinery after submitting the lowest bid in the latest of a raft of Algerian contract awards.

  • Saudi airline secures loan from Bahraini bank

    Saudi Arabia's National Air Services (Nas) has signed a $60.5m loan with Bahrain's Arab Banking Corporation (ABC).

  • Saudi Arabia eases cement export ban

    Northern Region Cement in Saudi Arabia is to resume its cement exports, with conditions attached. NCB Capital, the investment banking arm of Saudi Arabia's National Commercial Bank, said the Ministry of Commerce had sanctioned the decision. However, not all cement producers in the kingdom will be allowed to restart exports.

  • Saudi Arabia to build Gulf's biggest float glass plant

    Saudi Arabia is to build the largest float glass plant in the Gulf, in the Royal Commission's Industrial City of Yanbu. The manufacturing complex, which is scheduled to start in April 2010, will be set up by Obëikan Glass and will produce 800 tonnes per day of clear and tinted glass.

  • Saudi Arabia to end steel export ban

    Tariq Barlas, CEO of Al-Tuwairqi Group, the owner one of Saudi Arabia's top three steel makers, has told Reuters that he expects the government to end a ban on steel exports that has hurt profitability in the industry, before the end of July. 'Saudi Arabia will soon shift from being an importing country of metals to an exporting one. That is why the government wants to lift the ban,' Barlas said.

  • Saudi Arabia to publish tourism plan

    Saudi Arabia is to focus on enterprise initiatives for small to medium-sized private sector companies and developing various tourist destinations and economic zones, in a tourism plan to be published by year end. Some 47 million tourists visited the country in 2008 and by 2020, visitor numbers are predicted to hit 88 million. The hotel and tourism sector will generate SR101bn by 2020, making it one of the largest non-oil growth areas of the economy, said Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiq

  • Saudi Arabian Airlines increases flights to Lebanon

    Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) will increase its number of flights to Beirut this summer by 50 per cent.

  • Saudi Electricity Company awards transmission contracts

    Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has awarded three major transmission contracts worth SR299m ($78m).

  • Saudi Electricity signs transmission deals

    Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has signed two contracts worth SR410m ($109m) for the construction of transmission lines in Mecca and Jeddah with two local companies.

  • Saudi Electricity tender due

    Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) plans to issue a request for proposals for its Riyadh PP11 independent power project before the end of May.

  • Saudi Ethylene & Polyethylene starts Jubail production

    The Saudi Arabian and US joint venture Saudi Ethylene & Polyethylene Company (SEPC) has started production at its new petrochemicals complex at Jubail in Saudi, which includes two of the largest polyethylene plants in the world.

  • Saudi inflation falls to 5.2 per cent

    Inflation in Saudi Arabia fell to 5.2 per cent in April, bringing it to a 19-month low as the rate of food price inflation began to ease.

  • Saudi liquidity hits $267bn

    Liquidity in the Saudi economy has risen to over SR1 trillion ($267bn), according to figures released by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama).

  • Saudi selects airport guidance systems

    Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has selected US-based Sensis Corp. for deployment of Advanced - Surface Movement Guidance and Control Systems (A-SMGCS) and Wide Area Multilateration (WAM) systems for King Abdulaziz International Airport (Jeddah) and King Fahd International Airport (Dammam). Safety at both airports will be enhanced by using A-SMGCS to view aircraft and vehicles on the ground, while the multilateration subsystem will be expanded to provide the airports

  • Saudi steel plant deal signed

    Mohamed Abdulaziz Al-Rajhi & Sons Industry Holding is to sign a SR2.7bn ($720m) agreement with Banque Saudi Fransi to finance the building of a reinforced steel plant in Jeddah. It will have a production capacity of one million tonnes per year. The deal will see the French Calyon's affiliate operate as financial adviser and arranger for the financing.

  • Saudi to invest in satellite technology

    Prince Turki Bin Saud al-Saud, Vice President of Saudi's King Abdel-Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) has said that $2.14bn has been allocated for new investments in science, technology and innovation in the kingdom. According to Turki, King Abdel-Aziz City has been involved in the manufacturing of satellites for the past ten years. Saudi has 12 satellites in orbit, including two for communications. Turki said revenues from the industry are expected to increase exponentially in the

  • Saudi to probe cyber crime

    Saudi Arabia's Director General of Public Security said he plans to set up a specialized unit in all the criminal investigation departments in the kingdom to look into cyber crime. Lt. Gen. Saeed Al-Qahtani said the need has arisen for the investigative authorities to use specialists and advanced equipment to uncover evidence of cyber crime as it is posing a threat to public security.

  • Saudi to spend SR46bn on airport development

    Abdullah Rehaimi, president of Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) has said that the kingdom will invest more than SR46bn ($12.3bn) to overhaul its airports until 2020 and is setting up a new company to manage its 27 hubs, Zawya Dow Jones has reported. GACA is working with the International Finance Corp, an arm of the World Bank, to develop three airport city projects at the kingdom's three international airports in Riyadh, Jeddah, on the Red Sea, and Dammam, on the Ara

  • Saudi woman plans women's only hotels

    Amani Shaikhoon, a Saudi businesswoman, has told the Saudi Gazette that she is in the process of forming the first hotel company exclusively for women in the kingdom. Shaikhoon said what motivated her to invest in women's hotels was the fact that family parties and events are usually held in hotels which have no facilities to maintain the privacy of female guests.

  • Saudi, Emirates and Kuwait face recession

    The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts that Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE will go into recession in 2009.

  • Saudia adds more flights to Beirut

    Saudi Arabian Airlines has announced plans to increase its number of flights to Beirut for the coming summer season with five flights to be added to the scheduled ten. Seven weekly flights will depart from Jeddah, six from Riyadh and two from Dammam.

  • Saudis call for EU to compromise over trade deal

    The EU's failure to agree a free trade deal with the GCC is "unacceptable" and could result in Gulf states investing less money in the EU, says a senior former Saudi diplomat.

  • Saudis main tourist spenders in Lebanon

    Saudi tourists have been the biggest spenders Lebanon during the first four months of the year, accounting for 19% of total tourist spending. They were followed by tourists from Kuwait and UAE (13%), Egypt (8%) and Jordan (7%). Fashion and clothing accounted for 67% of total spending, followed by watches (11%) and perfume and cosmetics (5%).

  • Saudi's Tabuk signs food investment deal

    Saudi agricultural company Tabuk Agricultural Development (Tadco) has told the Tadawul that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with local partners, a consortium called Jenat and the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development, to set up an agricultural firm to invest abroad, without providing further details. The Jenat consortium includes dairy firm Almarai, Food Products and Aljouf Agricultural Development.

  • Shaheen Air launches Muscat flights

    Shaheen Air, Pakistan's second national carrier has announced the launch of two flights a week every Sunday and Thursday, from Muscat to Peshawar starting from May 17. Shaheen Air's GCC network includes Kuwait, Doha, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in addition to Muscat, which was added in August, 2007.

  • Sheikh Khalifa restructures Etihad board

    UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed al-Nahyan has restructured the board of directors at Etihad Airways.

  • Sheikh Mohammed removes Dubai's finance director

    Nasser al-Sheikh has been removed as director general of Dubai's Finance Department by a decree from the ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum on 18 May.

  • Sheikh Sabah appoints Kuwaiti prime minister

    Kuwait's Emir has reappointed his nephew Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Sabah as Kuwait's prime minister, according to a source close to the country's cabinet office.

  • Shell opens Jebel Ali bitumen tank

    Shell Bitumen, a subsidiary of the UK's Royal Dutch Shell has opened an 8,000-tonne storage tank in the UAE's Jebel Ali Free Zone.

  • Shell's head of gas and power resigns

    The UK/Dutch Shell Group's Linda Cook, the head of gas and power who was responsible for some of the company's largest Middle Eastern projects, will resign on 1 June after being overlooked to take on the chief executive officer (CEO) role at the company in late 2008.

  • Shuweihat 2 to complete financing by July

    Abu Dhabi power project Shuweihat 2 will complete its financing by early July, following Japan Bank for International Corporation's (JBIC) decision to invest about $1bn in the scheme.

  • SIA, EgyptAir sign codeshare deal

    Singapore Airlines has signed an expanded code-sharing agreement with Egypt's national airline, EgyptAir. Under the agreement, which takes effect June 1st, passengers will be able to fly to Dubai from Singapore on the Asian carrier and catch a connecting flight to Cairo and book tickets with EgyptAir to destinations such as Luxor and Sharm el-Sheikh. EgyptAir passengers will be able to buy SIA tickets to fly from Singapore to Bangkok, Melbourne and Sydney.

  • Siemens wins $83m Mirfa substation deal

    Germany's Siemens Energy has won a Eu60m ($83m) contract to supply an electrical substation for the Elixier nitrogen plant at Mirfa in the UAE.

  • Sofitel opens UAE property

    French luxury hotel chain Sofitel has launched its first property in the UAE. The Sofitel Dubai Jumeirah Beach is scheduled to open in the summer, and will feature 438 sea-view rooms over 31 floors including 27 Sofitel suites, 12 Prestige suites and one Imperial suite.

  • Sohar holds back expansion

    Bruce Hall, CEO of Oman's Sohar Aluminium, a $2.4bn joint venture with a unit of global miner Rio Tinto, has said the company has put the second phase of its plant on hold for now as the company assesses prospects for the metal. The company has completed the first phase of the project in February and is operating at full production capacity of 360,000 tonnes per year.

  • Sohar urea plant starts trial production

    Sohar International Urea & Chemical Industries (SIUCI) has started trial production at its $638m urea and ammonia plant at Sohar, Oman, more than a year behind schedule.

  • Sonatrach signs technology deals with Shoabi

    Algerian state energy major Sonatrach has signed technology contracts with four subsidiaries of Saudi Arabian engineering technology firm Shoabi Group, the contractors said in a statement on 4 May.

  • Sorouh invites firms to prequalify for Al-Mashtal deal

    UAE developer Sorouh Real Estate has invited contractors to prequalify for the contract to design and build the Al-Mashtal mixed-use development in the Khalidiyah area on Abu Dhabi island.

  • South Steel receives loan for Jizan from Riyadh

    Saudi ArabaiSouth Steel Company (SSC), a Saudi Saudi Arabia, has received a SR600m ($160m) loan from the kingdom's government investment body, the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF).

  • Starwood to open 1,000th hotel this year

    Starwood Hotels & Resorts will open its 1,000th hotel this year and break ground on many more despite the global economic downturn, Simon Turner, the company's chief development officer, told delegates at the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference. He said the company plans to open up to 200 hotels over the next two years worldwide and has 20 hotels in the pipeline in the Middle East. The company also will open the the first W hotel in Washington DC within the next 60 days, said Joe Sita, CEO of

  • Strabag wins Sohar airport contract

    Austria's Strabag has been awarded the RO38m ($99m) contract for the civil works on Sohar airport project in Oman.

  • Suez Canal revenue falls

    Egypt's Suez Canal Authority has said April revenues have dropped by 22.7% to $346.9m, up from the $327.9m reported in March, according to Reuters. The total number of vessels using the canal was 1,482 in April, up from 1,439 in March, and 1,272 in February. Changing revenues at the canal reflect global trade figures, and also the piracy taking place in the Gulf of Aden and off Somalia.

  • Sukuk market needs more transparency

    Sukuk instruments must become more transparent to ensure the Islamic finance market can return to growth when financial markets recover, according to a report by US rating agency Moody's.

  • Sukuk market to recover in late 2009, Standard Chartered

    Issuance of sukuk, Islamic bonds, is expected to return in late 2009, according to Afaq Khan, chief executive of Standard Chartered's Islamic banking arm Saadiq.

  • Swiss and US consortium wins Abu Dhabi oil deals

    A Swiss/US consortium has won two contracts worth more than $80m to supply compressors, electrical systems and maintenance services to boost production at two Abu Dhabi oil fields.

  • Swiss firm wins Saudi transmission deal

    Switzerland-based ABB has won a $100m contract to expand Saudi Arabia's transmission and distribution network.

  • Syrian Pearl airlines receives first plane

    Syrian Lou'loua (Pearl) Airlines, a joint venture between the state-run Syrian Arab Airlines, Cham Holding and Kuwaiti Aqeela, has received its first rented 96-seat BAe plane. The group will at first concentrate on providing domestic flights before looking to branch out of Syria.

  • Tabreed appoints chief executive

    National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed) has appointed Sujit Parhar as its new chief executive officer.

  • Tabreed appoints new CEO

    National Central Cooling, the UAE-based air-conditioning company known as Tabreed, has appointed Sujit Parhar as its new CEO, replacing Karl Marietta, who will remain as a consultant to the company.

  • Tabreed posts 29% profit increase

    Khadem Al Qubaisi, Chairman of National Central Cooling Company PJSC (Tabreed) has said that the company's unaudited Q1 consolidated net income rose 29% compared to 2008. Tabreed did not reveal any numbers for net profit or revenue. The company has 33 cooling plants in operation, with a further seven expected to come online this year.

  • Tabreed profits rise 32 per cent

    UAE-based National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed) has reported a 32 per cent increase in profits during the first three months of 2009.

  • Takreer delays Ruwais refinery bid deadline

    Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company (Takreer) has extended the technical bid deadline on three project management contracts for its new Ruwais refinery project by more than a month.

  • Takreer invites bids on remaining Ruwais packages

    Abu Dhabi Refining Company (Takreer) has published invitations to bid on the remaining construction packages for its new multi-billion-dollar refinery project at Ruwais.

  • Tameer Holdings signs Abu Dhabi towers deal with Al-Rajhi

    UAE real estate developer Tameer Holding has signed a fresh construction agreement with Al-Rajhi Projects & Construction and Al-Habtoor Engineering Enterprises for the Tameer Towers project in Abu Dhabi.

  • Tamouh awards Reem island work to Chinese firm

    UAE developer Tamouh Investments has awarded Hong Kong-based CSHK an AED860m ($234m) contract to build two towers at its Marina Square development on Abu Dhabi's Reem island.

  • Taqa reports 69 per cent fall in profits

    Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) suffered a 69 per cent decline in net profits in the first quarter.

  • Taqa signs Jorf Lasfar expansion deal

    Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) has signed a contract to expand the Jorf Lasfar independent power project (IPP) in Morocco.

  • Target wins Emal power plant deal

    UAE-based Target Engineering Construction Company, a subsidiary of Arabtec Holding, has won a AED71m ($19m) contract on the Emirates Aluminium (Emal) power plant.

  • TEC suffers non-operational losses

    Kuwaiti Touristic Enterprises (TEC) had non-operational losses of KD811,700 due to global economic crisis and the subsequent sharp drop in investments by the company in 2008. Chairman and Managing Director Khalid Al-Ghanim, attributed the losses to implementing auditing standards, which led to unrealised losses of KD1.8m, as well as following government orders to raise employee salaries.

  • The International Banking Corporation delays creditors' meeting

    Bahrain's The International Banking Corporation (TIBC) has postponed a meeting of creditors, that could have seen the company restructure its debt, from 21 May to 31 May.

  • The National Investor targets healthcare sector

    Abu Dhabi-based The National Investor (TNI) plans to invest up to $75m in establishing UAE healthcare services businesses over the next 12 to 18 months, according to Yahya Jalil, head of private equity at the firm.

  • Total's regional oil and gas output drops 4 per cent

    French energy giant Total saw its oil and gas production in the Middle East drop in the first quarter of 2009.

  • UAE academy to offer MSc in hospitality

    The Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, part of Jumeirah Group, will offer a new Master of Science degree in International Hospitality Management starting on October 2009, reported Emirates Business. The program will be open to students continuing their education with the Academy, as well as external applicants looking to advance their careers into executive, corporate and senior management levels.

  • UAE joins partnership signed to fight cyber crime

    The UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has signed an agreement with the International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber Threats (Impact) Alliance. The alliance acts as a nerve centre for detecting threats and shares information with 191 member countries. Aside from virus threats, the TRA also will be launching a programme to protect children who go online.

  • UAE needs policy shift to avoid gas shortage

    Abu Dhabi will face a gas deficit of 1 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) by 2020 if the country's policymakers fail to overcome supply and demand imbalances, according to a major UK consultant.

  • UAE reshuffles cabinet

    UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan has reshuffled the UAE's cabinet.

  • UAE to give property owners six month visas

    The UAE has issued a new resolution allowing property owners to enter and stay in the country for up to six months with a multi-visit entry visa.

  • UAE, Korea sign air MoU

    The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has signed an air services memorandum of understanding with the Republic of Korea, which entitles both countries to operate up to four weekly flights with immediate effect on the Abu Dhabi-Korea route. The MoU allows both parties to have no restriction on the type of aircraft and may be exercised either for passengers, in combination with cargo, or pure freighter services.

  • UK architect secures Louvre Abu Dhabi work

    UK architectural firm Pascall & Watson has been appointed by French architect Jean Nouvel for Louvre Abu Dhabi work.

  • UK tourism to Dubai down 7%

    Ian Scott, the director of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing's (DTCM) office in the UK and Ireland has said the number of visitors to Dubai dropped 7% from about 210,000 in the first quarter of last year to just over 195,000 in the same quarter of this year, The National has reported. The DTCM is to launch a new advertising campaign and a new trade website is being developed.

  • Underground rail planned for Qatar's Education City

    Qatar is planning to build an underground light rail network serving the Education City development outside Doha.

  • United Industries posts net loss in Q1

    Kuwait-based United Industries Company, a member of the Kipco Group has reported a net loss of KD200,738 for the first quarter of 2009. The company has announced growth in the value of total assets by 4% (KD6.8m) to reach KD199.5m as of 31st March 2009, compared to KD192.7m in 31st March 2008. Share of income from Hempel increased by 69% (KD145m) to KD356m compared to last year same period KD211k due to increased sales.

  • US firm inks $100m GCC deal

    Low Rider Establishment of Abu Dhabi has signed a $100m five-year agreement with US-based Universal Infotainment Systems Corp, which covers product distribution and support services for UIS Infotainment and UIS FMTS (Fleet Management Tracking and Surveillance) within all the GCC countries. 'This distribution agreement will allow us to expand our products line by offering the best available Navigation/Infotainment solution to our clientele,' said Thani Al Romaithi, General Manager of Low Rider

  • US to help fund Basra water and sewage projects

    The US will allocate $30m of donor funds to build water and sewage projects in Basra.

  • Visa to launch IT credit card in Saudi

    Visa, Microsoft, and Saudi-based Al Rajhi Bank have entered into a strategic agreement to provide financial solutions for small and medium enterprises that are adopting advanced technology into their business operations. Under the agreement, Al Rajhi will introduce a Visa-Microsoft 'Aamal' credit card, which will become the first Visa Microsoft co-branded credit card in Saudi Arabia. Saudi-based IT and communications solution provider Al-Falak Electronic Equipment & Supplies Co will provide t

  • Vodafone selects Oracle as strategic partner

    Vodafone Qatar has selected Oracle as its strategic partner for its initial launch, to deliver full quadruple-play services by the end of 2009. Vodafone Qatar has implemented a range of Oracle Communications technology and applications, including Oracle's Siebel CRM, Communications Billing and Revenue Management, Communications Service Activation, Application Integration Architecture for Communications, Database and Fusion Middleware.

  • Wared Logistics wins new Syria deal

    Wared Logistics has announced that it has secured significant new business for its Damascus, Syria-based Wared Transport (Specialized Truckload) operation. Major new customers include Premco, a manufacturer of pre-cast concrete and steel beams, the Bahra Steel Company, and the United Arab Aluminum Company.

  • Wataniya Airways reveals losses

    Wataniya Airways incurred a loss of KD2.7m ($9.4m) during the first quarter of 2009.

  • Wataniya eyes profit by end of 2011

    George Cooper, Wataniya Airways' CEO has said the airline is planning to increase its fleet strength up to seven A320s, as well as boost its flight frequency and number of destinations over an 18-month period, after which he expects the company to report a profit by the end of 2011.

  • Weatherford wins Oman oil services contract

    US-based Weatherford Oil Tools Middle East has won a long-term oilfield services contract in Oman.

  • Windows 7 open for testing in GCC

    Windows 7 beta is now available to be downloaded for testing in the GCC, Gulf News has reported. According to Wilson Xavier, a regional Microsoft manager, about 20% to 30% of IT pros and early adopters are currently using the operating system. Microsoft said there is no extensive support yet for Windows 7, as it is still in beta. The software is scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2010.

  • WorleyParsons bids low for Oman solar power deal

    Australia’s WorleyParsons is the low bidder for a consultancy contract for Oman’s first solar power plant.

  • WorleyParsons wins Egyptian nuclear power deal

    Egypt's Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NPPA) has awarded a consultancy contract for the country's nuclear power programme to Australia's WorleyParsons.

  • Yemen aims to modernize key airports

    Yemen's Ministry of Transport plans to announce an international tender for companies interested in developing and operating the Sana'a and Aden airports, reported the Yemen Post. Transport Minister Khalid Ibrahim Al-Wazeer said Yemen will follow some Arab and regional authorities which handed their key airports over to international companies to improve them.

  • Yemen gas project on track despite cost overruns

    The multinational Yemen liquefied natural gas (LNG) project will start production in late July or early August after significant delays and cost overruns, according to the company's chief executive officer Joel Fort.

  • Yemen gas project to begin operating in June

    The multinational Yemen LNG (liquefied natural gas) project will start initial operations in June, according to Joel Fort, the company's chief executive officer.

  • Yemen's oil revenues fall 75 per cent in first quarter

    Yemen earned 75 per cent less from crude oil exports in the first quarter of 2009 than during the same period a year before, as falling prices and production levels hit the country's main source of income.

  • Zabeel halts plan to invest $1bn in US hotels

    Zabeel Investments Executive Chairman Mohammed Ali Al Hashimi told Emirates Business that the company has postponed plans to invest $1bn in US hotels, and instead will focus on its investments in Dubai. 'First, because I think recovery will take much longer and second, the priority for us is our economy,' Al Hashimi told the daily.

  • Zain buys majority stake in Paltel

    Kuwait's Zain has acquired a 56 per cent stake in Palestine Telecommunication Company (Paltel), as part of a deal giving Zain management control of the largest telecoms business in Gaza and the West Bank.

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