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Alba changes Line 7 expansion plans

5 November 2024

 

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Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) has changed its capacity expansion plans. Instead of building a new Line 7, the aluminium producer now plans to install new production facilities to replace the existing lines 1, 2 and 3.

“Now, the intention is to demolish or stop the old lines, which are efficient from 1971. They are more than 50 years-plus, and we will replace them with new lines. Technically, this is not a new Line 7 project anymore because we are going to close lines 1, 2 and 3,” Alba CEO Ali Al-Baqali told MEED on the sidelines of the Gateway Gulf investor forum in Manama on 4 November.

The feasibility study for the project has already started and is being executed by US firm Bechtel. One of the key challenges is mitigating the drop in Alba's overall capacity while the new production facilities are built.

In 2022, Bechtel was appointed to conduct a feasibility study for Line 7. The firm was also the contractor for Line 6, which was commissioned in 2019.

Replacing lines 1, 2 and 3 will allow Alba to increase capacity by installing more efficient, modern production plants, while at the same time utilising existing assets at the Alba site in Bahrain.  

“There is no need for power because we are going to utilise the same power,” Al-Baqali said. “We also do not need a new cast house.”

Alba is the world’s largest single-site aluminium smelter outside of China. In 2023, it set a new record with 1,620,665 metric tonnes of production, an increase of 1.3% when compared to 2022.

The plan to replace lines 1, 2 and 3 is separate from plans to enhance the capacity of lines 4 and 5. In September this year, the Alba board approved an estimated $30m project known as Lines 4-5 Creep-up that is expected to increase Alba’s metals production capacity by 8,000 metric tonnes a year (t/y) upon completion.

Alba made two announcements on 3 November at the Gateway Gulf 2024 investment forum hosted by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (Bahrain EDB) in Manama. The announcements were made amid a series of important changes for the company.

Alba and Japan's Daiki Aluminium Industry Company will form a joint venture known as Alba-Daiki Sustainable Solutions (ADSS) to develop an aluminium dross processing facility in Bahrain. Alba will hold a 70% stake in the joint venture. Daiki will own the remaining 30%. Both partners intend for the aluminium dross plant to commence operations by September 2026.

Alba and Bahrain-based Array Innovation also announced plans to accelerate Alba's Industry 4.0 digitalisation journey with advanced artificial intelligence, data analytics and automation solutions to optimise Alba's operations and boost efficiencies.

Alba has made several key announcements in recent months. The most significant was on 24 October, when it informed the Bahrain Bourse, where it is listed, that it had appointed advisors to guide its due diligence process as it explores a potential business combination with Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden).

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/12852824/main0227.jpeg
Colin Foreman

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