Swiss-based company Ciba, which has a base in Bahrain, has signed a joint venture agreement with Astra Polymers of Saudi Arabia, to produce and sell customer specific antioxidant blends in the GCC.

The joint venture company will be called Ciba-Astra Additives Company Limited and will be based in Saudi Arabia.

At the same time, the two companies signed a letter of intent to study the feasibility of building an antioxidant plant in Saudi Arabia.

'We are pleased to announce the joint venture with Astra Polymers, a company with an extensive network and excellent reputation throughout the Middle East region,' said Ciba's head of industry platform plastics John Frijns.

'Under this agreement, Ciba becomes the majority owner in the new company, which will produce and sell customer specific antioxidant blends to resin producers in the fast growing Middle East region, and give us the base for future growth in the antioxidant market.'

'We are very happy to be building on our long-standing relationship with Ciba,' said Astra Polymers managing director, Mohammad N Al Utaibi.

'The new joint venture will bring state-of-the-art technology to Saudi Arabia to meet the increasing technical requirements of the polymer industry in the region.-TradeArabia News Service