Dubal achieves major production milestone

Dubai Aluminium Company Limited (Dubal), the world's seventh largest producer of high quality primary aluminium, has achieved a major production milestone, having produced its 10 millionth cumulative tonne of hot metal in mid-July this year.

The company, which next year celebrates its 30th anniversary, began operating with three potlines offering an initial production capacity of 135,000 metric tonnes per year at its inception in 1979. Eight years later, in 1987, the first million cumulative tonne of molten aluminium was produced. The five million milestone was reached in 2001, some 22 years after Dubal's inception. The total production yield has now been doubled in less than seven years.

The accelerated production growth rate reflects a series of six expansion projects, the last of which was completed in February this year, which has seen the smelter complex grow to nine potlines with a combined production capacity of approximately 950,000 tonnes per year.

At the same time, a commitment to advancing technologies has enabled Dubal continually to produce more primary aluminium than the plant's design capacity.

Abdulla J M Kalban, CEO of Dubal, said: "Last year, Dubal produced approximately 890,000 tonnes of molten aluminium in total, representing a 12.6 per cent increase on the prior year alone. In 2009 we are targeting 970,000 tonnes."

He said the growth trend is indicative that Dubal's ambitious vision to become the world's fifth largest producer of primary aluminium by 2015, by producing 2.5 million tonnes of the metal per year is both realistic and achievable.

Especially as the company has already begun to invest laterally in the development of greenfield smelters in the Middle East/North Africa region; as well as in the upstream aluminium industry, so as to secure Dubal's future alumina requirements.

"The Middle East is one of the fastest-growing aluminium industry hubs in the world.

The region produced seven per cent of the 38 million tonnes of the metal produced in 2007 (up substantially from one per cent in 1980). Analysts said the region has the potential to produce up to 10 million tonnes of the 60m tonnes annual consumption predicted for 2020."

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