Octal champions the Sultanate's industry-leading pet manufacturing capabilities at major tradeshows around the world

After recently returning from a successful participation at Emballage in Paris, Ahmed Al Najjar, Director of Government Affairs of OCTAL said, "Tradeshows represent a serious and credible platform for OCTAL to expand its presence on the world stage while reinforcing Oman's presence in critical markets. More importantly, it cements the Sultanate's position as a key manufacturing and distribution hub among some of the biggest and most powerful players in packaging related industries."

He added, "We are living proof of Oman's insurmountable potential to spawn whole new industries and radically change the global competitive playing field. With ready access to international shipping lanes circling the globe enabling delivery to the east coast of the United States in less than two weeks and fourteen days to the UK along with other major European ports, we offer a distinct competitive advantage over PET producers in Asia. The county's unique geographic location, attractive incentives for foreign direct investors and range of economic freedoms are only some of the advantages that are showcased to thousands of visitors during these tradeshows."

Najjar went on to say that Oman has strong fundamentals for a robust and sustainable manufacturing industry.

He commended the government's efforts in optimizing and maintaining economic growth by reducing the nation's dependency on crude oil exports and actively marketing Oman internationally as an emerging business hub.

"Oman is now living a new era of manufacturing which will play a critical role in promoting exports, generating employment and advancing research and development. As the sector continues to mature, it will become a source for greater innovation and competitiveness," said Najjar.

"The economic and political stability of the country, coupled with the government's desire to promote new industrial sectors has allowed production in Oman to make great strides forward. Oman is now a leading force in the manufacturing of high quality packaging which has created more opportunities for a growing population and contributed to the further development of the private sector."

OCTAL's participation is not limited to tradeshows and includes the 7th Annual Sustainable Packaging Expo which is a prestigious invitation only event organized by Walmart.

Operating from the Salalah Free Zone, the world's largest producer of PET resin and sheet on a single site has emerged as a premier market leader by producing products with superior mechanical and optical properties that also boast the lowest carbon footprint.

In a short span of 6 years, OCTAL has grown from 0 to a $1.5bn company and now ranks amongst the world's top four PET resin producers. The company generates $100m in monthly exports which represents approximately 2% of Oman's GDP, and contributes close to 15% of Oman's annual non-oil exports.

OCTAL's knowledge-based, technology-driven approach has propelled the company to the forefront of converting diverse packaging lines to PET with Oman-made products that serve the growing demand of Fortune 500 companies.

The company has enjoyed a whirlwind year in 2012 that saw OCTAL successfully complete phase two of its expansion plan on time and within budget, reach a total production capacity of 1 million metric tons of bottle-grade PET resin, take home a number of prestigious awards and exhibit at prominent international tradeshows.

It is now centering its efforts on further expansion to manufacture a total of 2.5 million tons per annum of PET and PTA by 2016.