RIYADH, 22 July — An environment-friendly project to produce duplex boards for packaging by recycling used cartons and papers will be set up here later this year. This will be the first project of its kind in Saudi Arabia for producing packaging material addressing the environmental concerns of the government.
“We are seeking loan facility from Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) for this project,” said Khaled Abdullah Al-Rajhi, a senior official of the Gulf Paper Factory, yesterday. The manufacturing facility will be set up in the premises of the Gulf Paper Factory.
Al-Rajhi said the project would cater to the growing needs of the local packaging industry. He said the duplex board project was in the final stages of execution.
Referring to another of his company’s project that became operational yesterday, Al-Rajhi said the unit had been set up to produce different kinds of paper and paper products for the local and neighboring markets.
The SIDF, Al-Rajhi said, had made available SR37 million in loan to finance the project.
This factory, he said, would produce a range of paper products including fluting medium paper, liner, white top test liner, kraft linear board, kraft paper and tissues.
He said the Gulf Paper Factory was currently producing fluting medium papers and tissues, and after some modifications of the plant, it would add several other grades of paper products.
Al-Rajhi said his factory, with the expansion of its production line, would produce more than 60,000 tons of paper annually.
The factory is using world-class Korean and German technology to produce a range of paper products as per international standard specifications, he noted. He said, “This project came within the government’s policy to diversify the industrial base of the Kingdom to reduce reliance on oil and petrochemicals”.
“This will help the move for import substitution. Saudi Arabia has been importing a range of goods and services including paper and paper products from 120 countries,” said Al-Rajhi, who claimed that he had the vision to blend commercial viability with national interest. These projects were examples of his vision being translated into reality, he added.
Meanwhile, Industry and Electricity Minister Dr. Hashem Yamani has approved allocation of sites for five projects at the Tabuk Industrial City. The new projects for producing chemicals, plastic and building material, will require an investment of SR26 million.
