Sipchem tops bumper earnings from Saudi petrochemical majors
Updated 21 October 2018
Arab News
LONDON: Saudi petrochemical producer Sipchem said its third-quarter profits surged by about half to SR180.3 million ($47.9 million) amid a brace of strong earnings from the sector.
The company also known as Saudi International Petrochemical Co, plans to merge with Sahara Petrochemicals as a wave of consolidation sweeps through the industry.
CEO Ahmad Alohali told Al Arabiya that the company’s third quarter performance was encouraging.
“Product prices varied,” he said. “Prices of nine of our products rose between 14 percent and 30 percent, as every product has its own dynamics. Production efficiency of Sipchem’s plant also improved.”
He also told the broadcaster that the ongoing US-China trade war could affect Sipchem, making it shift shipments from one market to another, he said.
Elsewhere, Yanbu National Petrochemical, also known as Yansab, overcame an increase in some of its feedstock costs to record a 13 percent jump in third quarter net profit to SR729 million compared to a year earlier.
It said the increase in profitability was down to higher average selling prices for most of its products.
Meanwhile, Saudi Kayan Petrochemical said net profit for the period rose by about 24 percent to SR471.9 million compared with a year earlier.
An improvement in productivity at some of its plants helped to drive profits higher, it said in a filing.
Saudi petrochemical producers from SABIC to Sahara are seeking to boost output and efficiency while oil companies such as Saudi Aramco are also increasingly looking at crude to chemicals technology to tap into the changing industry demand drivers.
Petrochemicals are set to account for more than a third of the growth in world oil demand to 2030, and nearly half the growth to 2050, adding nearly 7 million barrels of oil a day by then, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
“Our economies are heavily dependent on petrochemicals, but the sector receives far less attention than it deserves,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director.
“Petrochemicals are one of the key blind spots in the global energy debate, especially given the influence they will exert on future energy trends. In fact, our analysis shows they will have a greater influence on the future of oil demand than cars, trucks and aviation,” said Birol in a report earlier this month.
The Middle East remains the lowest‑cost center for many key petrochemicals.
Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East are at the lower end of the cost curve among petrochemical-producing regions for primary chemical production.
Currently the region accounts for 12 percent of the global production of high-value chemicals, 9 percent of ammonia production and 15 percent of the methanol market.
In addition it also has huge growth potential with 90 percent of naphtha output currently exported instead of being used as petrochemical feedstock because of the ample availability of
natural gas.
FASTFACTS
12%
The Middle East accounts for about 12 percent of the global production of high-value chemicals.
Startups across MENA secure fresh funding to scale chips, AI, mobility and proptech platforms
The company plans to use the funding to scale operations across Dubai and the wider UAE before expanding into other GCC markets
Updated 3 sec ago
Nour El-Shaeri
RIYADH: Startups across the Middle East and North Africa continue to attract investor backing, with companies spanning semiconductors, artificial intelligence infrastructure, and health technology all benefitting.
Rimal Semiconductors, a Saudi chip design startup, secured a bridge funding round from Keheilan Asset Management and an undisclosed regional investor as the company works to strengthen its position within the global semiconductor supply chain.
The funding will support Rimal’s strategy of building a fabless semiconductor business that designs chips while outsourcing manufacturing to international foundries, enabling the company to distribute production across multiple jurisdictions while retaining ownership of its intellectual property.
Rimal currently maintains manufacturing partnerships across Taiwan, Korea, and China, and is in discussions with US-based foundries as it seeks to diversify its production network.
The company positions its approach as a way to navigate the increasingly fragmented semiconductor industry, where geopolitical tensions between the US and China are reshaping global supply chains and restricting market access for many companies.
By maintaining Saudi ownership of its intellectual property while distributing manufacturing across multiple partners, Rimal aims to supply its chip designs to markets worldwide regardless of manufacturing location.
The startup is also finalizing a distribution agreement with a regional distributor operating across Turkiye, Egypt, and Morocco, as well as Tunisia and the UAE, supported by local engineering teams providing technical support in each market.
Rimal currently has six contracts in the pipeline, including one with a major Egyptian corporation, with projects spanning defense systems, power grid infrastructure, and data center technologies.
iQtech raises first investment round
iQtech LLC, a Qatar-based startup specializing in advanced medical simulation and cross-reality technologies, has closed its first investment round with backing from European assessment technology company Selexi and deep-tech collaborator Yuniro.
The funding marks a milestone for the startup, founded in 2025, as it transitions from its founding phase into a structured growth stage while accelerating development of its AI-powered medical training platform.
The investment will support the development of EsculapioVR, iQtech’s flagship platform that combines immersive virtual reality simulations with artificial intelligence-driven performance evaluation designed to enhance medical education and professional training outcomes.
Operating from Doha within the Qatar Science & Technology Park ecosystem, the startup positions itself at the intersection of healthtech and edutech.
Weego operates a mobility-as-a-service application that integrates multiple transportation options into a single platform. (Supplied)
The company aims to modernize professional training through high-fidelity simulation environments for health care professionals, as well as civil and military training programs.
With the new funding, iQtech plans to strengthen its technical infrastructure, accelerate platform development, and expand deployments across Qatar and the wider Middle East and North Africa region.
Weego raises $1.1m
Weego, a Moroccan–Senegalese mobility startup, has raised $1.1 million in a funding round led by early-stage venture capital firm Azur Innovation Fund as the company seeks to expand its mobility-as-a-service platform across African markets.
Founded in 2020 by Saad Jittou and Mor Niane, the company operates a mobility-as-a-service application that integrates multiple transportation options into a single platform, allowing users to access and book public transit, ride-hailing services, and other transportation modes through one interface.
The company also provides enterprise mobility solutions through its WeegoLines service, which enables companies to organize and manage employee transportation. The service is designed to improve reliability and efficiency in staff mobility for corporate clients.
“Transportation remains one of the primary barriers to economic activity in many cities,” said Jittou, co-founder and CEO of Weego. “We are building the technological layer that helps make existing mobility infrastructure more efficient and accessible.”
With the new funding, Weego plans to expand into additional cities across Morocco, strengthen its enterprise mobility services, and further develop its multimodal platform.
The company is also preparing for broader regional expansion into other African markets, with longer-term ambitions to explore opportunities in Europe and the Middle East.
Skipr raises $2m seed round
Skipr, a startup developing infrastructure designed to enable trusted interaction between autonomous artificial intelligence systems, has closed a $2 million seed funding round at a $10 million valuation.
The funding will support the company’s expansion from Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global technology ecosystem, as it works to scale sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure for national and enterprise deployments.
Skipr focuses on enabling secure communication, coordination, and value exchange between AI systems operating across organizations, cloud environments, and geographic jurisdictions.
The company’s platform is designed to allow governments and enterprises to maintain sovereign control over their data and decision-making processes while deploying AI-powered services.
We are building the trust infrastructure nations and enterprises need to deploy AI safely, confidently, and at scale.
Andreas Hartl, CEO at Skipr Technologies
Skipr said it is already working with telecommunications operators, AI and cybersecurity laboratories, and data center partners to deploy autonomous digital services at national and enterprise scale.
“This funding accelerates our work on what we believe is a foundational layer for the AI era,” said Andreas Hartl, CEO at Skipr Technologies.
“As AI systems become autonomous and interconnected, secure AI-to-AI interoperability under sovereign control is no longer optional. We are building the trust infrastructure nations and enterprises need to deploy AI safely, confidently, and at scale,” he added.
Skipr operates as part of the Hub71+ Digital Assets specialist ecosystem, which brings together technology companies, regulators, and strategic partners focused on developing digital infrastructure.
Rewa launches UAE rent payment and rewards platform
UAE-based proptech startup Rewa has launched its digital rent payment and rewards application across the country following the close of a strategic seed funding round backed by Qatar Development Bank, Plug and Play, and Neocity Invest, as well as Startup Wise Guys, Second Century Ventures, and several Gulf Cooperation Council real estate executives.
Founded in 2024 by Ramzi Mneimneh and Najib Khanafer, Rewa enables tenants to pay rent through card or bank transfer while earning loyalty points that can be redeemed across more than 150 partners spanning travel, retail, and dining, as well as groceries and lifestyle services.
The platform also allows users to apply rewards toward future rent payments and utility bills. In addition to tenant services, Rewa provides tools for landlords through its Rewa Alliance platform, which streamlines rent collection through automated tracking, digital receipts, and workflows designed to align with UAE rental regulations.
The company plans to use the funding to scale operations across Dubai and the wider UAE before expanding into other GCC markets.
Ayar Labs raises $500 million
Ayar Labs, a US-based semiconductor startup focused on optical interconnect technology, has raised $500 million in a series E funding round led by Neuberger Berman.
The round included participation from institutional investors AKR Invest, Insight Partners, Sequoia Global Equities, and 1789 Capital.
Qatar Investment Authority joined the round as a Middle East-based institutional investor.
Additional strategic investors included Alchip Technologies and MediaTek, joining existing backers such as Advent Global Opportunities, Boardman Bay Capital Management, and IAG Capital Partners, as well as Light Street Capital, Playground Global, AMD Ventures, and NVIDIA.
Founded in 2015 by Mark Wade, Vladimir Stojanovic, Chen Sun, Rajeev Ram, and Milos Popovic, Ayar Labs develops optical interconnect technologies known as co-packaged optics, which replace traditional electrical connections used in chips and data centers.
The company’s technology is designed to improve data transfer speeds and energy efficiency in high-performance computing environments, including artificial intelligence infrastructure and large-scale data centers.
