Bahrain Aluminium Extrusion Company (Balexco) has signed a agreement with Technal of France to set up a joint venture to market Technal products and services in the Middle East.

The new venture will be known as Technal Middle East.

Balexco is one of the leading extruders in the Gulf. It has tripled capacity and invested in integration of its facilities in the past four years and now exports some 90 per cent of its output to over 15 countries including the GCC and Europe.

Technal is one of the European leaders in the aluminium systems market. Its product range covers architectural systems for the residential as well as curtain-wall and structural glazing applications. Technal designs, produces and distributes aluminium construction systems for all types of building markets in France, Europe and worldwide.

"This project can be considered as a unique experience, reinforcing the direct presence of Technal in Bahrain, in a newly created company of substantial size," says a Balexco statement.

The project is expected to achieve an annual turnover in excess of $30 million within three years.

Both Balexco and Technal see opportunities for growth in the international system segment in the Middle East market. Therefore, both partners intend to capitalise on their strength in this segment, the statement said.

"The basis of the JV would be the combination of the strengths of Technal and Balexco. In particular Technal would bring in the product and technical knowledge and expertise Balexco would bring the market presence, regional culture, fabricator/distributor network that has been built up over the past 20 years and extrusion expertise," it said.

The venture will be an independent entity, entirely dedicated to the sales of Technal products and services.

"The company will focus on marketing the benefits and features of Technal products to architects, consultants, contractors, specifies and owners, providing design advice and tailor-made solutions for complex projects in the Middle East, training of customers in Technal products, and distributing Technal products.

"The joint venture will initially focus on maximising performance in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Oman, Qatar Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Iran and will expand to other Middle East markets in due course, " the statement added.