Investment hits record
Posted: 18 June 2007
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Investments in the United Arab Emirates climbed to a record level in 2006 as strong crude prices allowed the government to boost spending and encouraged the private sector to invest more, according to official data.
 The gross fixed capital formation, covering public and private investment, peaked at $32.9 billion last year compared with around $25.5 billion, figures from the Ministry of Finance show.
It gave no breakdown for the investments but sources close to the Ministry of Energy said around AED12 billion, or 10% of the total investment, was channeled into the oil and gas sector, mainly into projects to expand the country’s crude output capacity.
The UAE is locked in a programme to upgrade crude output capacity to four million barrels per day from just below three million bpd. Actual production is currently estimated at around 2.6 million bpd, the highest output level since pumping began in the early 1960s.
High oil prices fetched the UAE its highest ever crude export income of around $50 billion in 2006 pushing the economy by a staggering 35% to nearly $174.9 billion from $129.7 billion in 2005. |
