The new JK Cement RAKEZ plant is now up and running in Ras Al Khaimah. JK DryChem Industries LLC, a subsidiary of India’s JK Cement, has officially inaugurated a 5,000 sq m construction chemicals manufacturing facility in the Al Ghail Industrial Zone of Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ). The opening, announced on 3 September 2026, marks the next phase of the group’s expansion in the UAE and gives the emirate’s fast-moving construction sector a local source of admixtures, additives, dry-mix materials and coatings. For a destination building hotels, homes and roads at record pace, that matters more than it might first appear.
What JK Cement has opened in Ras Al Khaimah
The facility was inaugurated by JK Cement Group Managing Director Dr Raghavpat Singhania alongside RAKEZ Chief Customer Experience Officer Ian Hunt, with senior executives from both organisations in attendance. The plant is reported to represent an investment of around AED 6 million and is designed to produce high-performance construction solutions, including liquid admixtures, prepared additives, dry-mix materials and protective coatings.
According to RAKEZ Group CEO Ramy Jallad, seeing the facility move from plans to an operational plant in a short time is an important milestone for the emirate, adding new production capabilities and stronger regional supply chains. Dr Singhania described the launch as a key step in strengthening JK Cement’s presence in the UAE and expanding its construction chemicals business into international markets, noting that local manufacturing brings the company closer to its customers and creates a platform for future growth.
With operations underway, the plant will initially serve customers across the UAE and the wider GCC, with plans to extend exports to Africa and other global markets. Its position in Al Ghail gives it direct access to Ras Al Khaimah’s industrial and logistics infrastructure, including road links to Saqr Port and Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, for moving raw materials in and finished products out.
Why this matters for Ras Al Khaimah’s growth story
Ras Al Khaimah has long been the UAE’s quiet industrial powerhouse. The emirate is home to RAK Ceramics, one of the world’s largest ceramics producers, and to a cluster of cement, glass, pharmaceuticals and building materials manufacturers spread across RAKEZ’s Al Ghail, Al Hamra and Al Hulaila industrial zones. RAKEZ itself recently passed 50,000 registered companies from more than 100 countries, and the emirate attracted AED 771.5 million in new capital investment in the first half of 2026 alone.
The timing of the JK Cement opening is no accident. Ras Al Khaimah is in the middle of the largest construction cycle in its history. Wynn Al Marjan Island, the region’s first fully integrated gaming resort, is targeting a September 2027 opening. RAK Central, the emirate’s new business district, has completed its infrastructure phase and is onboarding sub-developers. Analysts expect around 25,600 new homes to be delivered by 2030, and a wave of branded hotels and residences is rising across Al Marjan Island, Mina Al Arab and Al Hamra. Every one of those projects consumes admixtures, dry-mix mortars and coatings, and sourcing them locally shortens lead times and cuts costs for contractors.
Indian investment is also a growing theme. Ras Al Khaimah’s Ruler, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, met India’s ambassador to the UAE earlier this summer to review ways to strengthen trade and investment ties, and Indian manufacturers have become some of RAKEZ’s most active new entrants. JK Cement’s decision to build rather than simply import reinforces the emirate’s pitch as a manufacturing base that serves the GCC, Africa and South Asia from a single location.
What this means for visitors, residents and investors
For travellers, an industrial plant in Al Ghail will not change a beach holiday on Al Marjan Island. But it is part of the machinery that keeps the emirate’s hotel pipeline on schedule. The hotels, restaurants and attractions that make up things to do in Ras Al Khaimah are being built by contractors who need reliable local supply, and each new manufacturer in RAKEZ makes that pipeline more resilient. If you are tracking the emirate’s biggest opening, our Wynn Al Marjan Island guide follows construction progress and the confirmed 2027 opening date.
For residents and expats, the plant means jobs. Manufacturing openings like this one typically bring engineering, logistics, quality control and sales roles, adding to the population growth that is already pushing demand for housing in Al Dhait, Al Hamra Village and Mina Al Arab. Families relocating for such roles will find our areas guide useful for comparing neighbourhoods, schools and commute times.
For investors, the story is about depth. A destination that can manufacture its own building materials, host 50,000 companies and still deliver 670,000 visitors in a half-year is one that is diversifying rather than betting everything on tourism. That diversification is a large part of why S&P Global affirmed Ras Al Khaimah’s A/A-1 credit rating with a stable outlook for 2026, and why new RAK hotels continue to attract global brands. Expect more announcements from RAKEZ as the Al Ghail and Al Hamra industrial zones fill up ahead of the Wynn opening.
Source: Zawya / TradeArabia