Table of Contents
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Do I need approval to trade refractory materials?
No. Activity 4690.91 requires no third-party approval, so Meydan Free Zone can issue the business license directly. The activity is also not subject to AML compliance requirements.
2. Who buys refractory materials in the UAE?
Aluminium smelters, steel producers, cement plants, glass manufacturers, petrochemical operators, and waste incineration facilities. The UAE hosts the world's largest premium aluminium producer alongside a broad heavy industrial base.
3. Why is demand for refractory materials stable?
Furnace and kiln linings wear in service and must be replaced on a maintenance cycle regardless of market conditions, so demand follows industrial output and planned shutdowns rather than discretionary spending.
4. Can I install or reline furnaces under this licence?
No. Installation and relining are contracting activities requiring separate licences. Activity 4690.91 covers supplying the materials, not carrying out the work.
5. Can I manufacture refractory products?
No. Manufacturing, including moulding and firing refractory shapes, is an industrial activity outside this scope. This licence covers trading materials produced by others.
6. What materials fall within this activity?
Firebrick and shaped refractories, castables and monolithics, ceramic fibre insulation, refractory mortars and cements, and specialist high-alumina, magnesia, and silicon carbide grades.
How to Start a Smelters & Furnaces Refractory Materials Trading Business with Meydan Free Zone
Refractory materials trading covers the supply of heat-resistant, non-metallic materials used to line smelters, furnaces, kilns, incinerators, and reactors. These materials hold their structure at temperatures that would destroy ordinary building products, which makes them a consumable necessity rather than a discretionary purchase for any heavy industrial operator. Demand is driven by industrial output and by the maintenance cycle, since linings wear and must be replaced on schedule.
The UAE offers an unusually concentrated customer base. Emirates Global Aluminium is the world's largest producer of premium aluminium and one of the largest industrial companies in the country, sitting alongside steel, cement, glass, and petrochemical operations that all run high-temperature process plant.[1] Dubai's manufacturing sector, supported by the Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030, has been a deliberate focus of investment in advanced and high-value-added production.[2]
The wider trade environment supports the sourcing side. UAE non-oil foreign trade passed AED 3.8 trillion in 2025 with imports above AED 2.1 trillion, giving traders established routes to refractory producers across Asia and Europe.[3]
A Concentrated Industrial Base Consuming Refractory Linings
A Dubai-licensed refractory materials trader supplies an industrial base that includes the world's largest premium aluminium producer alongside steel, cement, and petrochemical operators, within an economy whose non-oil foreign trade passed AED 3.8 trillion in 2025 and where imports alone exceeded AED 2.1 trillion.
Sources: Gulf News / Emirates Global Aluminium, Dubai Chamber of Commerce / Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030, UAE Ministry of Economy (2026)
Who Is This Activity For?
4690.91 - Smelters & Furnaces Refractory Materials Trading
Activity 4690.91 sits within the broader class covering non-specialised wholesale trade. Within that class, this activity is the trading of refractory materials used in smelters and furnaces. It covers the resale of non-metallic, heat-resistant materials used to make linings for furnaces, kilns, incinerators, and reactors, including firebrick, castables, mortars, ceramic fibre, and monolithic products. The activity concerns supplying these materials as traded goods. It does not extend to manufacturing refractory products, or to carrying out the installation and relining work itself.
The trading range covers:
- Refractory firebrick and shaped products
- Castables, gunning mixes, and monolithic materials
- Ceramic fibre blanket, board, and insulation products
- Refractory mortars, cements, and jointing compounds
- High-alumina, silica, and magnesia based materials
- Consumables supplied for scheduled relining campaigns
- Import and distribution from international refractory producers
Service Scope
Firebrick & Shaped Refractories
Pre-formed refractory brick and shapes supplied for furnace, kiln, and incinerator linings across specified alumina and silica grades.
Castables & Monolithic Materials
Pourable and gunnable refractory mixes used where complex geometry makes shaped brick impractical, common in modern relining work.
Ceramic Fibre & Insulation Products
Blanket, board, and modular insulation supplied to reduce heat loss and improve thermal efficiency in high-temperature plant.
Refractory Mortars & Cements
Jointing and bonding materials supplied alongside brick and castables to complete a lining installation package.
Specialist High-Temperature Grades
High-alumina, magnesia, and silicon carbide based products supplied for aggressive service conditions in smelting and petrochemical plant.
WHAT THIS ACTIVITY EXCLUDES
It is important to note what activity 4690.91 does not cover. The manufacture of refractory products, including firing, moulding, and forming, is an industrial activity outside this scope. Installing, building, or relining furnaces and kilns is a contracting activity and is separately licensed, as is the demolition of existing linings. Trade in ordinary construction materials, bricks, and cement for building use sits within its own classification. Engineering consultancy on furnace design and thermal performance is a separate professional activity.
In short: if you are supplying refractory materials to industrial operators, you are in. If you are manufacturing the products, installing or relining furnaces yourself, or trading ordinary construction materials, you are not.
Licensing & Compliance
Third-Party Approval:
No third-party approval is required before your business license is issued.
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance:
This business activity is exempt from AML compliance requirement.
References
[1] Gulf News. Emirates Global Aluminium and UAE industrial trade profile.
[2] Verified Market Research (citing Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030). UAE manufacturing growth.
[3] Trade Arabia (UAE official trade statistics). (2026). UAE's non-oil foreign trade tops AED3.8 trillion.
