SITE Visit

anking on future demand for aluminum and its downstream products, Emirates Aluminum (EMAL) is building in the United Arab Emirates what will eventually become the world’s largest single-site aluminum production facility. EMAL is a joint venture partnership formed in May 2007 between Dubai Aluminum Company and Mubadala Development Company. More than a year after EMAL was launched, the project is on schedule to begin production in 2010.

      Annual capacity for the US$5.67-billion first phase of the project will be 720,000 tons. Construction of a second, $3-billion phase to double capacity is due to begin upon completion of the first phase. The first phase includes a 2,000-MW gas-fired power plant.

      Australian aluminum and mining veteran Duncan Hedditch became CEO of EMAL in mid-2007. He says the project will help diversify the oil- and gas-dominated UAE economy. He believes the EMAL smelter will mark a shift to the Middle East as the hub for world aluminum production.

Duncan Hedditch is CEO of EMAL.

Three other massive aluminum smelters are due to come on-stream in the region over the next few years.

      “From my perspective, our progress is going extremely well,” Hedditch says. “We have committed about $2.5 billion to the project so far, and the site work is progressing significantly. We have significant concrete in the ground and we will start erection the third week in July.”

      The EMAL smelter is rising from the sands of the developing Khalifa Port & Industrial Zone (KPIZ) in Taweelah, about halfway between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Abu Dhabi Ports Company began dredging and reclamation of 45 million cubic meters of material for the port in February. KPIZ is a multi-billion dollar project that involves construction of a container and industrial port, plus more than 100 square km. (38.6 sq. miles) of industrial, logistics, commercial, educational, residential, special economic and free zones. Abu Dhabi Ports Company expects the first vessel to visit the port in late 2010.

      Hedditch says the KPIZ site was chosen for the smelter because of the heavy industrial nature of the project and because the seaside location will offer new port facilities. EMAL will have a dedicated berth at the port, he says.

      Hedditch expects the facility to produce its first hot metal in April 2010 and to be in full operation by December of that year. The project is a massive job creator, with 3,500 workers on site as of early June and 400 others performing engineering work in four offices around the globe. The number of on-site workers will balloon to 14,000 during the project’s peak construction period. EMAL expects the market for its aluminum to be global.

      “We plan to serve markets in Asia, Europe and North America initially, and we hope to also be able to serve markets including transportation and construction in Australia. One of the reasons for setting up a smelting operation is the capability of setting up downstream operations. We are expecting this to happen in this region with development of intermediate manufacturing processes such as wire and foil.

      “When we go to Phase Two, which will double our operation,” he continues, “we expect to be supplying tonnages into further regional markets. A lot of that will be exported, but the value added will come in the UAE.”

      With much of the Middle East in frenetic construction mode, lining up contractors and suppliers for a project of such magnitude can be a strain, but Hedditch says the project has adhered to schedule so far.

      “The Middle East is extremely busy at the moment, so securing contractors and sufficient bidders has sometimes been a challenge. We have had to work a bit hard to secure what we need. We have ordered what we need with long lead times. The moment EMAL was launched, we ordered turbines, ship unloaders and other equipment, spending $1 billion in the first month of our existence. That has enabled us to preserve our schedule.”