UAE's plastic prices to remain steady in 2015 despite oil plunge

(MENAFN) Borouge, the Abu Dhabi plastics manufacturer, said that it expects steady demand will help stabilize plastic prices in 2015, after the global plunge in oil prices resulted in plastic prices to decline by 20 percent between September and January, The Peninsula Qatar reported.

Borouge, which is a joint venture between state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Austria's Borealis, said that since oil is the main component in the manufacturing of plastic, the petrochemical prices are closely linked to oil prices which resulted in the decline in their prices.

"I see 2015 as very challenging for all petrochemicals given the fact that oil prices continue to drop. The consumer packaging that we use every day, that's not going to stop - demand for that segment is quite strong," Senior Vice President for Middle East and Africa said.

Meanwhile, the company said that its 2014 capacity was about two million tons, with expectations that it will reach nearly four million tons this year due to its three plant, in which it has invested up to USD4 billion, increasing its capacity to reach 4.5 million tons in 2016.