A senior official from the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the Arabian Sugar Company’s $150m sugar refinery in Bahrain says the project is expected to break ground in early May.

Pierre Guillen, chairman of Ingeneria Franco Espanola Omega (IFEO), says preparatory work started as soon as the company won the EPC contract in January and he is confident the facility will be completed on schedule in the fourth quarter of 2011.

“Initial work is being carried out at our headquarters in Majorca [Spain], but we will be moving our operations fully to Bahrain soon,” says Guillen.

“At the height of the construction phase, there will be between 600 and 700 workers on site.”

The 585,000 tonne-a-year (t/y) grassroots refinery will be located at the Hidd Industrial area in Bahrain and the sugar produced will be sold to customers in the Middle East.

“Demand in the Middle East and North Africa is very high at the moment,” says Guillen. “It’s a growth market for us.”

IFEO is also currently building a 511,000 t/y refinery in Tunisia that is set to be completed by the end of 2011.