Today, the petrochemical industry of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries provides no less than 10 percent of global chemical output by volume.
Multiple factors underlie the creation of the industry over the past half-century. Far-sighted leaders courageously committed billions of dollars to develop world-class infrastructure.
GCC nationals employed in petrochemical enterprises saw their apprenticeship and employment as a patriotic mission. International oil companies brought know-how and expertise. Government-directed ventures set the stage for the emergence of a flourishing private sector.
Successive chapters deal with the earliest beginnings of the industry, the creation and growth of Saudi Arabia’s SABIC, and the development of petrochemical enterprises in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman.
The final section reviews the state of the industry today, as it prepares for fresh challenges and opportunities.
Richly researched and written by a respected authority on the life of the GCC countries, Molecules, Mind and Matter sets the frame for all future analysis of this major aspect of modern culture.
Lisa Kaaki –
Molecules, Mind and Matter recounts the birth and the meteoric development of the petrochemical industry in the Arabian Gulf. Behind the facts and figures, the author highlights the outstanding role played by a few remarkable individuals, which provide the reader with some fascinating insight in to this epic story. At the end of the book, we long to know more about these exceptional entrepreneurs and statesmen who had the vision, the resolve and the capacity to develop a petrochemical industry in the Arabian Gulf.
New book documents history of GCC petrochemical industry by Lisa Kaaki, ArabNews.com – March 16, 2016