Shaheen Chem Investment, owned by investors from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman, is planning to invest Dh4 billion, or around $1 billion, to build a chemical complex in Abu Dhabi.

The company has signed an agreement with the Khalifa Industrial Zone of Abu Dhabi (Kizad) to lease land for a two-stage complex that is intended to support the UAE’s expanding chemical industry.

In a first phase, Shaheen will build a plant to produce 130,000 t/y of caustic soda and 160,000 t/y of ethylene dichloride (EDC). The facility will supply caustic soda raw material to the Al Taweelah alumina refinery operated by Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA).

The second phase will include a doubling of caustic soda capacity and extending operations to include production of vinyl chloride and PVC. A timescale for both stages of the project was not disclosed.

Shaheen’s chairman, Rashed Al Suwaidi, said the company was excited to become the first producer of EDC in the UAE.

The zone is reported to have attracted investors from countries such as China, Japan, India and Brazil among others since it opened in 2012.