Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
---|---|---|---|
03ABUDHABI1100 | 2003-03-08 09:08:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Abu Dhabi |
null Diana T Fritz 05/24/2007 04:55:42 PM From DB/Inbox: Search Results Cable Text: CONFIDENTIAL SIPDIS TELEGRAM March 08, 2003 To: No Action Addressee Action: Unknown From: AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI (ABU DHABI 1100 - PRIORITY) TAGS: ENRG, PGOV, ETRD Captions: None Subject: ABU DHABI ALUMINUM SMELTING PROJECT FOR OMAN REVEALS CONTINUING STRATEGIC VISION OF THE UAE OFFSETS GROUP Ref: None _________________________________________________________________ C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 01100 SIPDIS CXABU: ACTION: ECON INFO: DCM AMB P/M POL Laser1: INFO: FCS DISSEMINATION: ECON CHARGE: PROG APPROVED: AMB:MMWAHBA DRAFTED: ECON:GAR/TEW CLEARED: DCM:RAA, POL:STW VZCZCADI743 PP RUEHC RUEHZM DE RUEHAD #1100 0670908 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 080908Z MAR 03 FM AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8718 INFO RUEHZM/GCC COLLECTIVE PRIORITY |
C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 001100 |
1. (U) Classified by Ambassador Marcelle M. Wahba for reasons 1.5 (b and d). 2. (C) The UAE Offsets Group (UOG) has under the aegis of de facto Defense Minister Muhammad bin Zayid Al-Nahyan (MBZ) become Abu Dhabi Emirate's strategic business development platform, responsible for many innovative projects serving both practical and broader strategic objectives. UOG's best-known venture, the ongoing Dolphin Project to pipe natural gas from Qatar to Abu Dhabi, was as much about achieving political reconciliation between the estranged Al- Nayhan and Al-Thani (hurt feelings derived from President Zayid giving refuge to the deposed father of the current Qatari Amir) as it was about meeting the UAE's burgeoning demand for gas. Similarly, UOG's project to build a 200 million cubic feet per day desalination plant in Fujairah Emirate (with the water to be pumped to Al-Ain in Abu Dhabi Emirate), was at first about Abu Dhabi rewarding the well- regarded leadership of Fujairah with a multi-billion dollar project. That vision has now expanded to encompass a major power component at the plant, which will be used to run a projected two billion USD aluminum smelter at Sohar in neighboring Oman. 3. (C) The head of the New Ventures Unit at UOG, Khaldun Al-Mubarak, told Econchief and Econoff March 3 that Offsets, after having "created value" by envisioning how such a cross-border joint venture could have both economic and political benefits for Abu Dhabi, has now turned the aluminum smelter project over to ADWEA -- the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority. ADWEA will work with the Omani authorities and the private sector (including Aluminum Canada - ALCAN) to move forward with the project, which should produce significant revenue and, more importantly for Oman, jobs. Asked by Econchief how the Dubai Aluminum smelter firm, Dubal, had reacted to the creation of such a near-by competitor, Al-Mubarak observed that the Dubai authorities were not pleased, but had no reason to complain as they had been offered a chance to participate in the Sohar project but had declined, claiming that they would only join in the venture if it were located in Dubai Emirate. "Perhaps they thought we would not proceed without them," the UOG official stated, "but they were wrong." 4. (C) Comment: The UAE, as part of its resolution of a long-running border dispute with Oman last summer, committed to significant cross-border investment (although the details that were shared with us focused more on tourism and road development along the coast between Muscat and Sur). The Fujairah desal plant, which began life as a means to water the extensive Al-Ain farms and gardens of the Abu Dhabi shaykhs, has now morphed -- in a move that is vintage UOG -- to reflect that broader strategic vision. Perhaps equally interesting is the success with which MBZ has used UOG to bring into his ambit two of his half-brothers, ADWEA's Shaykh Dhiyab (whose mother is from the well-connected Al- Darmaki tribe and whose full brothers include Amiri Guard Chief Nahyan and Abu Dhabi Seaport head Said) as well as Hamed -- who as the head of Union Water and Electricity Company (UWEC) is overseeing the construction of the Fujairah plant. Hamed also serves as head of the Abu Dhabi Economic Department, with which UOG is working to create a development plan for Abu Dhabi's Musafah industrial zone. Hamed's full brothers include the the de facto Interior Minister, Shaykh Saif, and Ahmed, who heads the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, responsible for managing the government's huge overseas investments. It is also worth noting that UOG -- as an Abu Dhabi Emirate institution -- sought participation in the Sohar project from Dubal, but clearly believed that proceeding to cement ties with Oman even without such involvement was worth whatever ill feelings such action might engender in Dubai. Wahba |