Ben Lindsey (Alcoa Vice President of sales for bauxite and alumina), Kelly Thomas (Alcoa Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer), EGA CEO Abdulnasser Bin Kalban and Simon Storesund (Chief Supply Chain and Business Development Officer EGA) at Al Taweelah alumina refinery in Abu Dhabi.
© Alcoa / EGA (Business Wire)
New partnership: Alcoa and Emirates Global Aluminium sign long-term supply agreement
02 June 2023
Düsseldorf
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), one of the largest industrial companies in the United Arab Emirates, and Alcoa, one of the world's leading producers of bauxite, alumina and aluminium products, have announced a new multi-year agreement. Under this agreement, Alcoa will supply EGA with smelter-grade alumina among others.
The agreement is scheduled to begin in 2024 and is currently set for eight years, during this time EGA will be able to purchase up to 15.6 million tonnes of alumina from Western Australia. The supply agreement will represent a significant portion of Alcoa's annual alumina sales to third parties. Alcoa will also become EGA's largest third party supplier of alumina through this supply agreement. EGA's Al Taweelah alumina refinery in Abu Dhabi supplied 47 per cent of EGA's total alumina demand in 2022.
"Alcoa operates the world's largest third-party alumina business with low-carbon processes, and we are proud to be recognised by EGA as a leading global producer with this significant additional volume," says Roy Harvey, Alcoa's President and CEO, pleased with the new agreement. The agreement is the largest alumina supply contract ever signed between Alcoa and EGA and is also intended to strengthen the long-term supply relationship between the two companies.
For a sustainable future
Both companies have extensive sustainability goals, Alcoa also has a vision to reinvent the aluminium industry for a sustainable future.
"The majority of our alumina needs for the next decade are now secured through our own production and a long-term supplier in Alcoa that aligns with our sustainability goals," explains Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of EGA. This agreement between the two companies is intended to further strengthen EGA's platform for future growth. As such, the agreement also includes options for EGA to choose Alcoa's low-carbon EcoSource™ alumina – the aluminium industry's only low-carbon alumina brand.
EcoSource is produced at no more than 0.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) per tonne of alumina (Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions), half the industry average of 1.2 tonnes of CO2e. This measurement includes direct emissions from the company's bauxite mining and alumina refining operations, as well as indirect emissions from the energy consumed in these processes.
About the companies
EGA is one of the largest industrial companies in the UAE outside the oil and gas industry, operating smelters in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, an alumina refinery in Abu Dhabi and a bauxite mine in the Republic of Guinea. EGA has been developing technologies in the UAE for more than 25 years and focuses on improving the efficiency of the aluminium smelting process. In the coming decades, the company aims to act as a technology enabler for the aluminium industry, expanding its position as a technology supplier and creating a thriving ecosystem for manufacturing innovation in the UAE.
Alcoa is a global leader in bauxite, alumina and aluminium products with a vision to reinvent the aluminium industry for a sustainable future. Alcoa is committed to greater efficiency, safety, sustainability and stronger communities, and has also developed a process that has made aluminium an affordable and essential part of modern life.