Dubai Investment (DI) will launch a glass company to invest in, acquire & manage glass firms around the world, a top official said 13/12/06. MD Khalid Kalban told Gulf News that the regional property boom was creating major demand for glass. The new company will announce its investment strategy in days, he added. "DI's new subsidiary is hungry for global & regional future acquisitions. The company will manage all investments in the glass industry, & will eye new development chances. The glass manufacturing industry is currently struggling to keep up with glass demand created by the booming property development sector in the region." DI has completed the acquisition of Saudi American Glass Company (SAGC) after more than 18m of negotiations & is attempting to buy another glass company in the kingdom, Kalban added. SAGC will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dubai Investments. With an annual production capacity of 3 million square metres, Saudi-based SAGC is one of the largest Middle Eastern glass makers. It is the latest addition to DI's expanding portfolio of subsidiaries and the acquisition is expected to increase DI's market penetration. "We are negotiating with another company to acquire a new glass manufacturing plant in Riyadh", Kalban said. "Acquiring a high-production, well-entrenched company such as Saudi American Glass Company represents a golden opportunity for us", he added.
