Ittihad paper mill, located in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. has signed a cooperation agreement with Omya of Switzerland to manufacture Precipitated Calcium Carbonate. Omya is a major player in the Carbonate Minerals Market and its expertise should help Ittihad Paper Mill to produce high-quality writing and printing paper for both domestic consumption and the export market. The new PCC plant is predicted to come online in the third quarter of 2018 with an initial production of 100,000 metric tons every year. The PCC is going to be based on the Omya Multifill® concept in order to maximize the paper sheet filler level. Omaya Multifeel is a unique measure that optimizes paper production efficiency while also enabling improved quality properties such as brightness, printability, opacity, and bulk.

In addition to this, the PCC plant should help Ittihad Paper Mill attain its environmental sustainability goals by fully using the CO2 emissions of the mill along with local limestone as a raw material. This will help enable substantial savings in terms of water, energy, and fibre. Ittihad Paper Mill LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ittihad International Investment that is based in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The Mill construction work is current in the first phase, with a production capacity of 320,000 tons every year of folio, uncoated woodfree sheets and reels that began in the fourth quarter of 2016. Barring any unforeseen delays, the project should be completed as per schedule.

Harald Pfaller, Omya Greater South and East Region CEO said made his excitement at the PCC plant construction quite clear in an interview given. He is of the opinion that the close collaboration between Ittihad and Omya has led to this long-term commitment between the two companies. Omya is a worldwide producer of industrial minerals – typically pigments and fillers created from dolomite and calcium carbonate – and it is also a global distributor of speciality chemicals.