Star Cement to invest $200m in RAK unit

Dubai: Star Cement Co LLC, a leading player in manufacturing and trading cement in the Middle East, will invest $200 million (Dh730 million) in a high-tech clinkerisation manufacturing unit in Ras Al Khaimah.

Built to produce 6,500 tonnes of clinker per day, the facility is based over an area of more than 40,4286 square metres and is part of the Dubai based $5.69 billion conglomerate ETA Ascon Star Group.

Expected to be completed by next February, the energy efficient and environment friendly plant has the capacity to produce 2.2 million metric tonnes of clinker per annum. A boon to Star Cement's UAE operations, it will supply the much-needed clinker for their cement grinding plants in Abu Dhabi and Ajman.

Star Cement will have their own clinkerisation facility, which will further reduce their dependency on imports, the present source of clinker.

Ahmad Salah Al Deen, director of Star Cement, said, "Our plan is to cater to an increasing demand for cement in the UAE in line with the construction boom. The existing capacity caters to 18 per cent of the demand for cement in the UAE."