Sharp as a Whip

What is the background of Petro Middle East, and how has the company opened its market to new opportunities throughout its 20-year history?

Petro Middle East was established in 1995 as a fully Emirati company with the objective of supplying equipment and providing high-quality services to the oil and gas, petrochemical, and utilities industries here and in neighboring Gulf states. Throughout these 20 years, we have been able to offer our clients a vast range of the latest, most eco-friendly products and services by adapting the newest technologies to our daily operations. We work under a diverse list of principles and have joint ventures with other major players in the industry, promoting knowledge transfers and best practice expertise among our peers.

The UAE is renowned for the high quality of its oil and gas companies. How has Petro Middle East managed to keep ahead of the competition as a supplier for the major competitors in the local market?

The strategy Petro Middle East has followed was designed and implemented by our management and crafted to ensure sustainable growth and profits for the group, be it through adding more services or investing in new joint ventures. In addition to that, Petro Middle East believes in valuing the caliber and quality of employees within our team, and our main ambition has been to build a goal-oriented team. We believe in investing in our employees’ capabilities and in giving them all the resources needed to excel in their respective fields, which resulted in the company staying on top of its game vis-á-vis major competitors.

What steps has Petro Middle East taken to diversify its operations over time, and what new areas are you looking forward to exploring?

Petro Middle East has invested in many joint ventures over the years, like Press Bolts M.E., the first fastener-manufacturing facility in Abu Dhabi, and RRC for Industrial Chemical Cleaning and Specialty Services. We have recently embarked on a new joint venture to provide engineering services and maintenance for the electro-mechanical sector. This diversification process has helped us successfully execute a number of jobs for the Riyadh and Jeddah airports’ expansions through our joint venture firm, RRCME, in addition to several jobs in Oman.

The downtick in oil has given suppliers that offer cost-effective products an opportunity. How has Petro Middle East built momentum for this?

It is true that cost-effective products have been given a greater chance to penetrate the market, and we are taking the chance to get our products out there in this highly competitive market. For example, through our Turbodene product line specialized in waste heat recovery, we are working with various clients to implement systems that will save power by recovering wasted heat. We are doing some feasibility studies for various clients. Furthermore, we also are proposing value-added engineered products and solutions to ADNOC companies, such as high strength composite tubulars/OCTG for down hole applications in collaboration with Akiet (Holland), which will save millions of dollars in drilling and completion budgets.

What is the significance of building key partnerships for your company?

Building key partnerships with international companies has been always part of the vision of Petro Middle East’s management. That is the reason behind the joint ventures that we continue to develop. Our aim is to continue to look for other joint ventures that will enhance our market share in the UAE and GCC and contribute to creating a more stable group of companies.

What is your investment plan for the upcoming year, and where would you like to see the firm by 2020?

Petro Middle East will keep searching for innovative solutions and product suppliers to represent them in the UAE, as well as for new joint ventures to help us maintain sustainable growth until 2020. We will invest in the upstream industry, engineering services, the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning industries, and other industrial applications outside the traditional oil and gas industry to diversify the group’s long-term revenue.