Zawya quoted Mr Mohammed H Zakaria CEO & GM of Saudi Steel Profile as saying that Saudi Arabia''s constructors cannot rely on steel imports for big infrastructure projects because they are then vulnerable to global ups and downs.
He said that Saudi Arabia consumes almost 16 million tonnes of steel, of which 9 million tonnes are produced locally.
He added that "Steel is imported from far eastern countries like China, sometimes Turkey and even neighboring countries where there is excess supply of steel. They sell it or dump it in Saudi Arabia because we still have a very big market for steel. Also, we see a very big potential for growth in the country as there are almost half a trillion dollar projects in the pipe line for the next 5 to 6 years and for which the government has already committed."
Mr Zakaria said that "We are also expecting huge demand from Qatar, as it plans on spending some like USD 100 billion for the world cup, and is relying on steel supplies from Saudi Arabia."
Speaking about quality benchmarks, Mr Zakaria noted that the world steel industry now has many more players and competition than before and customers are entitled to know about these benchmarks.
He said that "Our highly experienced, motivated and dedicated team ensures on time delivery of orders and maintaining quality standards while keeping the cost down. Our market share is almost 30% and we are the largest manufactures of this segment of steel products in Saudi Arabia."