Dana Gas PJSC, which is the largest regional private sector natural gas company in the Middle East, and Levidian, a British advanced materials company, announced on October 07, 2026, the successful commissioning of the first LOOP 20 unit at the Sharjah Graphene Park, thereby reaching a milestone for the beginning of first graphene production in the UAE.
The unit is now completely operational with a yearly capacity for production of over one tonne of quality graphene. Production is now underway, and the partners are in discussions with a number of potential customers throughout the UAE and wider GCC for long-term graphene offtake contracts. A number of large-scale prospective local customers are presently trialling the product utilising Levidian graphene.
It is well to be noted that this first graphene production in the UAE follows Dana Gas and Levidian signing a Memorandum of Understanding – MOU in May 2026, at Make it in the Emirates, so as to develop the Sharjah Graphene Park – which is a UAE-based advanced materials manufacturing and commercialization initiative – only four months ago.
The four-month move from agreement to production highlights the speed of implementation and the backing for advanced manufacturing in Sharjah.
For the first phase of the project, LOOP 20, it is a small investment of less than $1 million to set up commercial production in Sharjah and to help develop demand within the region. Dana Gas and Levidian are moving forward to the next step of the project, with more LOOP 60 and LOOP 100 units being constructed in the UK.
When fully operational, these units have the potential to increase the partners’ graphene production capacity to more than 10 tonnes annually by the end of 2026 and bring the total capital investment to roughly $2.5 million.
According to the CEO of Dana Gas, Richard Hall, “the successful commissioning of our first graphene production unit at the Sharjah Graphene Park, just four months after signing our MoU with Levidian, further demonstrates Dana Gas’ track record of delivering projects on time. It also reflects our commitment to creating additional value from natural gas while supporting industrial innovation in the UAE. With production underway, further capacity under construction and encouraging engagement from prospective customers, we now have a platform to scale the opportunity in line with commercial demand. We believe this disciplined approach has the potential to create long-term value for Dana Gas and its shareholders.”
Alex Holden, CEO of Levidian, said that “The commissioning of LOOP 20 marks an important step in establishing graphene production in the UAE. Moving from our initial agreement to production in just three months demonstrates what can be achieved with a strong industrial partner such as Dana Gas. With further LOOP capacity already under construction, our focus now is on supporting the development of graphene applications and long-term customer relationships across the UAE and wider GCC. With several large-scale prospective customers already trialling our graphene in the region, we are seeing encouraging momentum as we move from production to wider commercial adoption. Sharjah Graphene Park gives us the platform to supply those customers locally and, alongside Dana Gas, to scale production as demand grows.”
The project also has potential for additional growth, with total investment estimated to reach about $50 million as production scales. There will be a continuity to deploy capital in a disciplined manner, backed up by long-term customer offtake requirements and suitable investment return limits.
Levidian’s patented LOOP technology employs microwave plasma so as to crack methane, resulting in hydrogen and solid carbon as high-quality graphene. This means that existing natural gas streams can be turned into higher-value materials, creating new business possibilities for otherwise under-utilised gas, and helping with emissions-reduction efforts.
Graphene is a valuable and versatile form of carbon prized for its strength and light weight as well as conductivity. It can be used in everything – be it batteries and tyres to concrete, coatings as well as polymer products.
The partners want to build a secure regional supply of high-quality graphene and support its adoption into major sectors such as construction, polymers, coatings as well as energy.