Air Liquide reported that Air Liquide is starting up a new oxygen unit in Alexandria to supply the steel mill of EZZ.

This Air Separation Unit will supplement the 2 existing units already in operation, bringing total installed capacity to 700 tonnes of oxygen per day. This investment is also based on a long term supply agreement.

To supply its growing needs in Industrial Merchant in Egypt, Air Liquide has just commissioned an Air Separation Unit near Cairo with a production capacity of 140 tonnes per day of liquid oxygen and nitrogen.

An additional argon production facility with a capacity of 12 tonnes per day will also be commissioned in Alexandria to supply the welding gases and argon mixture industry in Egypt and in its neighboring countries.

The total investment for these new units and the recent acquisitions of Al Khafrah and Pure Helium amounted to USD 150 million, which will contribute to growth in 2009. Air Liquide is the leading global player in the Middle East and has its presence in Egypt, Lebanon, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria and the United Arab Emirates, where the Group has established its headquarters for Middle East region.

With 450 employees in the Middle East, Air Liquide invested USD 300 million over the 2002 to 2007 period and has an investment program of another USD 1 billion in the Arabic Gulf region over the next 5 years.