Emirates Global Aluminum Invests $3 Billion in UAE Alumina Refinery

---

Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The first alumina refinery in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is scheduled to begin operations by the end of 2017. The Taweel refinery initially will produce 2 million tons of alumina per year, and a second phase of the project will enable it to produce another 2 million tons.

The state-owned Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has completed feasibility studies for the $3 billion project.

View Project Report - 300158246 83200019 300055301 83200018

The UAE contributes about 50% of the Gulf's annual production of 5 million tonnes of aluminum production; EGA currently contributes 2.4 million tonnes of that total. The $15 billion EGA was formed in 2013 with the merger of Abu Dhabi's Emirates Aluminum (Emal) and Dubai Aluminum (Dubal).

The company also owns bauxite producer Guinea Alumina Corporation and has a 45% stake in Cameroon Alumina. Bauxite is the feed for alumina, which in turn is the feed for primary aluminum production.

The refinery will be financed with a combination of equity and debt.

EGA's Dubal is planning to invest $600 million during the next three years to upgrade its smelter, which currently produces 1.1 million tonnes annually. The smelter upgrade will expand output by 100,000 tonnes when completed.

For related information, see August 19, 2014, article - Middle East Aluminum Production Growing 8.4%, Global Sector Growth 3.5%.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, three offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.