A slew of regional industrial cooperation agreements: Several regional players inked USD 2 bn worth of trade-oriented industrial cooperation agreements at the Higher Committee for Industrial Partnership for Sustainable Economic Growth (IPSEG) in Doha this week. The agreements cover manufacturing and supply agreements, Wam reports.

But first, what is IPSEG? The IPSEG initiative was launched by the UAE in 2022 to promote joint “integrated industrial projects” between member countries via trade and the use of local components in manufacturing, according to its website. Launched with a USD 10 bn investment fund, IPSEG set its focus on key sectors: fertilizers, petrochemicals, pharma, textiles, minerals, agriculture and food products, and downstream procurement. Jordan, Egypt, and Bahrain were the first to join the initiative in 2022, and Qatar and Turkey recently joined, with the fifth summit marking their first meeting as member states.

Here is what we know about the trade-oriented supply ventures:

  • Qatar + Bahrain ink steel supply agreement: Bahrain Steel inked a USD 1.27 bn agreement to supply the state-owned Qatar Steel with 5 metric tonnes of raw materials over a five-year period, according to a statement. The agreement aims to reduce reliance on imported raw materials to strengthen the local supply chain in both countries, Arab News reports.
  • Jordan, Egypt, and UAE ink plastics supply contract: Jordan’s Exceed Industries and Egypt’s Delta El Nile secured USD 10 mn contracts to supply PET plastic containers and plastic cups, respectively, to UAE’s Hayatna-National Dairy.
  • UAE + Qatar partner up on animal feed supply: UAE’s National Feed Factory signed a USD 15 mn agreement to supply animal feed to Qatar’s Al Rayyan Horse Essentials.

Other notable agreements from the meeting:

  • Egypt’s GCA eyes UAE market with new plant: Egypt’s Giza Cable Accessories (GCA) is planning to develop a USD 7 mn new facility in the UAE that aims to produce cable accessories and electrical connectors;
  • A UAE and Morocco pharma partnership: UAE’s Globapharma inked a USD 50 mn partnership agreement with Morocco’s Zenith Pharma that will see the pair cooperate on tech transfers, manufacturing, and licensing of pharma products and treatments;
  • A mattress production partnership: Morocco’s Dolidol signed a USD 55 mn partnership agreement with UAE’s Intercoil that will see the pair cooperate on expanding mattresses and foam production in UAE and Saudi and explore sustainability and R&D partnerships.
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