Dubai Group buys into Malaysian biodiesel firm

Dubai: Dubai Group, the diversified financial services company of Dubai Holding, yesterday said it has invested Dh180 million for approximately 30 per cent of Malaysia's GBD Investment Limited (GBDI), the largest biodiesel plant in Southeast Asia.

The investment was made by Dubai Ventures, the equity investment company of Dubai Investment Group, a subsidiary of Dubai Group.

GBDI has completed construction and begun production of its 200,000 metric tonne biodiesel facility at Lahad Datu in the state of Sabah, Malaysia. The company is preparing to commence construction of its Phase 2 facility, which will increase GBDI's biodiesel production capacity to 500,000 metric tonnes per annum. GBD's plant has the ability to use both palm oil and jatropha as feedstock.

GBDI's facility will produce biodiesel and pharma-grade glycerine under the European Union and American standards for the Korean as well as global markets. GBD has already signed offtake agreements for all of its production.

Abdul Hakeem Kamkar, chief executive of Dubai Investment Group, said, "We are proud to be a strategic partner of GBDI. Biofuels and renewable energy are preferred industry focus for Dubai Investment Group, and we intend to bring this technology to the geographic regions, specially the Middle East."

Dr. Hwang Jong Sic, chairman of GBDI, said, "We are greatly honoured to welcome the Dubai Investment Group into our family of investors, an esteemed investor who acknowledges the field of "green" energy and is one of the first movers from the Middle East into biofuels technology."