Once completed in the third quarter of 2023, the terminal will have peak capacity of 40,000 cubic meters for storage of chemical raw materials DUBAI: Petrochem Middle East, one of the region’s largest chemical distributors, has signed a 30-year lease with DP World and will build a new chemical terminal in Jebel Ali Free Zone. The new facility will cost between $80 million and $90 million to build, according to a statement. It will be in addition to the UAE-based company’s existing Jebel Ali terminal, which it built in 1999. Once completed in the third quarter of 2023, the terminal will have peak capacity of 40,000 cubic meters for storage of chemical raw materials and will also be fitted with distillation and processing units. It will comprise of 24-30 bulk chemicals storage tanks and other facilities such as a nitrogen generation plant and automatic drum filling machines. “Today, our annual turnover is over 2.5 billion dirhams ($681 million) and with the new project, we are expecting short term and long-term gains of about 10-15 percent of our investment,” said Yogesh Mehta, CEO, Petrochem Middle East. Petrochem Middle East was founded in Jebel Ali Free Zone in 1995. The facility will be its second distribution and storage terminal in Jebel Ali and its fifth globally. "Despite the highly unstable market due to the pandemic, over the course of 2020, the GCC’s chemical output expanded by 1.5 percent compared to a global decline of 2.6 percent,” said Abdulla Bin Damithan, CEO and managing director, DP World - UAE Region and Jafza. “The petrochemical industry is a priority sector for the country and the region.” The project is predicted to contribute more than $200 million of new trade to and from Dubai a year.