MBM Holdings has announced the formation of MBM Solar Holding, which will build a solar-grade polysilicon plant in the UAE.

The polysilicon plant will have a total capacity of 2,500 tonnes per annum of high quality solar-grade polysilicon product and is expected to start production in early 2012.
The project is being sponsored by MBM Holdings and will be developed jointly with ERC of Singapore, which has an extensive experience in developing similar plants.
Costing $400 million, the project will be the first upstream plant of its kind to be constructed in the UAE and will have synergies with Abu Dhabi’s focus on downstream solar projects.
MBM is currently in negotiations with local authorities for land and power for the plant.
The project will be the first of its kind in the Middle East to produce polysilicon as it utilises ERC's existing designs that will shave off at least 18 months from a typical project lead-time.
The project will be constructed over a total area of approximately 250,000 sq m in a yet to be decided location.
MBM Holdings will soon give out a mandate to an investment bank to seek the residual parts of equity and debt for this project.
A feasibility study has been conducted and the project engineering partners have been identified. The state-of-the-art plant will use the latest equipment and produce polysilicon at prices competitive to Chinese or Middle East plants, according to he company.
MBM chairman Sheikh Mohammed bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum said: “ERC Singapore is our equity and technology partner given their worldwide networks, technical-commercial expertise, existing management team and their ability to plan and execute a project in record time.”
He said that MBM Solar Holding will form the anchor for supporting other private sector developers in the solar downstream sector, adding that the plant will be built to accommodate incremental production capacity so as to increase production beyond 2,500 tonnes per annum.
ERC director Rassym Abzhanov said: “The project will be MBM’s first major strategic initiative in the renewable sector and will benefit from the world-class infrastructure available in the UAE in terms of facilities and personnel. This project will be lucrative for sovereign and private investors in Mena region.”
The development of the MBM Polysilicon project is in line with the Dubai government’s economic diversification strategy and its thrust on alternative energy.