Manufacturing objective in line with Operation 300bn
Emirates Global Aluminium has signed an agreement to supply alumina to The Alumina Industrial Company, enabling the development of a new industry making speciality products from alumina and contributing to the achievement of the UAE’s industrial growth strategy Operation 300bn, according to a press communique.
The Alumina Industrial Company, established by the Maithan Group and Bathwal Corporation, intends to develop the UAE’s first complex to make speciality products from alumina in Khalifa Economic Zone Abu Dhabi. These products have widespread applications in refractories and abrasives for industrial applications.
The project requires a local source of alumina, and EGA is the only UAE producer. The supply agreement is the first time EGA has sold alumina from its refinery to a third-party, extending EGA’s support to industrial expansion in the country. Alumina is the main feedstock for aluminium smelters. All the production from EGA’s Al Taweelah alumina refinery is currently used in EGA’s smelters.
Alumina supply
EGA’s supply of alumina to the project is a further expansion of EGA’s local commercial sales that enable downstream industrial activity. EGA sells some 10 per cent of its metal in the UAE, to 26 companies that make everything from car parts to window frames for local use and global export.
Operation 300bn aims to develop the UAE’s industrial sector and enhance its role in stimulating the national economy. It aims to more than double the industrial sector’s contribution to the GDP to AED 300bn by 2031.
“This commercial agreement to supply alumina to a new industry under development in the UAE further expands our contribution to industrialisation and prosperity in our nation, in line with the goals of Operation 300bn,” stated Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer, Emirates Global Aluminium.
Plant development
“The Alumina Industrial Company plans to develop a plant in KEZAD with a production capacity of 80 thousand tonnes per year of specialised alumina products, with the potential to expand to 150,000 tonnes annually,” commented Nikunj Bathwal, Director, The Alumina Industrial Company.
The project is expected to create 200 jobs in construction and 150 permanent roles once in operation. First production is expected in 2025.
The plant’s production is expected to replace some imports required in supply chains of UAE industries ranging from steel, aluminium, petrochemicals, glass to cement.
