Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company started operations at two new pipe manufacturing facilities that extend their production capabilties and positions them to take advantage of the demand for glass reinforced epoxy resin pipes for the oil and gas industries.

The first of these facilities to commnence operations was the newly-built $10 million manufacturing plant of Amiantit Fiberglass Industries (I) Pvt. Ltd (AFIPL), a joint venture between Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company with 70 per cent and the Salgaocar Group of Goa, India with 30 per cent. 
Located on more than 20,000 square meters of built-up area on a 260,000 square meters site at Navelim, Bicholim, Goa, the state-of-the-art factory produces Fiber Reinforced Polyester (GRP) pipes and storage tanks using Flowtit fiberglass manufacturing technology owned by Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company. 
The plant is currently servicing a $ 22 million order from Reliance Industries Limited, India’s leading petroleum company, for the supply of 5000 underground fuel storage tanks ranging in diameter from 1900 mm to 3200 mm and capacities from 15kl to 70kl. 
GRP underground and aboveground tanks are manufactured by the Amiantit Group with volume capacities of up to 48,000 gallons for storing gasoline, aviation and jet fuel, diesel fuel, and potable or waste water.
Amiantit GRP tanks are resistant to corrosion and are therefore friendly to the environment because of their non-leakage properties.
They are strong, durable, easy to install and maintenance-free. Corrosion-caused replacement costs are eliminated as well as periodic corrosion testing and additional expenses and concerns related to environmental issues.
Flowtit pipes are produced using the continuous filament winding process, by which diameters from 80 to 4000 mm can be produced in lengths of up to 18 meters with pressures ranging from 1 to 32 Bar.
GRP pipes are produced by combining glass fiber reinforcements, thermosetting polyester resin and specially selected fillers in determined portions, resulting in a flexible structural composite conduit designed to convey fluids.
Following the inauguration of the Goa factory, the Amiantit Group added the newest of its many manufacturing facilities in Saudi Arabia with the opening of the Amipox plant at 1st Industrial City, Dammam.
Built at a cost of $8m, the factory is fully owned by Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company and produces under the license of Amipox International Technology, which also is fully owned by Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company.
The current stage of the facility covers 1800 square meters of the 7600 square meters building space, with the remaining area reserved for phase two which will include a second pipe production line and a fitting production line. The total area of the Amipox site includes an additional 7500 square meters open yard area.
 The state-of-the-art facility is fully automated and includes a computer controlled filament winding pipe production unit that manufactures glass reinforced epoxy resin pipes within the range of 80mm and 600mm diameters in a standard pipe length of nine metres and in pressure classes up to 3000psi (200 bar). The plant has an annual production capacity of 1600 MT, which equals 130 kilometres of average diameter pipes.
Amipox GRE products serve a variety of markets including industrial, oilfield, chemical, offshore, and marine.
GRE pipes are lightweight, easy to transport, easy to install, and are extremely resistant to corrosion. They are used as a cost effective alternative to metallic piping which often degrades and fails due to corrosion.
Amiantit manufacturing facilities produce pipes in a variety of materials using technologies that can be used for fluid systems other than water, therefore supplying the requirements of the energy sector is a logical next step.
Commenting on Amiantit Group’s future plans, Fareed Al Khalawi, President and CEO of Saudi Arabian Amiantit Company, said “We are currently monitoring economic reform programs in those regions where there is significant potential for business due to expansion of the gas, oil and petrochemicals industries, including Turkey, Iran, India, Romania, Central Asia, and East Asia.'
'Also, we have established a foothold in the Saudi energy sector with the strategic acquisition of a 5.6per cent share in the newly formed Industrial & Energy Company, which is part of the Saudi government’s economic reform program that includes privatization of government entities.”