Kuwaiti Factories Are Threatened By Waste Exports Abroad

Factory owners in Kuwait claim they face closing due to exports of copper, scrap and crushed iron, aluminum, used oils, paper, plastics, and glass, and electronics and batteries even though government decisions have explicitly forbidden the export of recyclable waste.

According to an Arabic daily, the former Minister of Commerce and Industry, Fahd Al-Shariaan, recently issued a decision prohibiting the export of iron scrap during the period of March 17 through June 17, 2022, regulating the export of waste on June 4, 2021.

In spite of the previous decisions, dealers and manufacturers said the door to exporting a good deal of liquid and solid waste remains open, even if only partially or exceptionally, as Kuwaiti markets need wastes like iron, copper, paper, cardboard, plastics, and more, which are in high demand internationally as a result of current conditions.

He emphasized that the Kuwaiti market needed all types of iron scrap waste of all varieties without exception, while also noting that there was not enough iron scrap waste for its factories, as witnessed by the fact that hundreds of tons of iron scrap waste are imported by Kuwait annually so that the factories can operate at full capacity.

By preventing the export of iron scrap, the price of iron in Kuwait will remain stable, a percentage of the local market's iron needs will be met, and the increase in price will be contained, particularly since rebar used in construction operations has seen sharp increases recently in Kuwait because of the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war on world markets.

According to Al-Kharafi, iron scrap is used in a variety of industries, such as in construction, consumer goods, air-conditioning, and equipment, and is thus of great importance to all countries, especially Kuwait, which is experiencing a surge in urbanization, whether for government projects or for other purposes, such as for the construction of new housing in the cities of Al-Mutla'a and Southern Khaitan, which will require thousands of tons of iron and other materials for construction.

In his speech, Al-Kharafi emphasized the need to activate decisions preventing exports, as many countries have recently done for a vast array of food and consumer products, especially considering the world is experiencing extraordinary circumstances that require it to preserve the basic resources possible to avoid future problems.

According to Nabil Al-Qena'i, Director General of United Paper Industries, waste continues to be exported abroad in spite of the urgent need for these products in the local market, As a result of the continued opening up of the export doors, there was a severe shortage of waste locally, making many factories unable to produce as their work was disrupted, and some factories even stopped production at times. This is especially true given that around 6 thousand tons of paper waste are exported every year..

In his opinion, it has long been a great economic burden for his carton manufacturing company to export waste paper and cardboard overseas, mainly to India, China and other countries that use these materials in the production of white paper, as they pay large sums of money.

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