Ma′aden / Alcoa Joint Venture Breaks Ground on State-of-the-Art Rolling Mill
Ma′aden, the Saudi Arabian Mining Company, and Alcoa (NYSE:AA) today
announced they broke ground on their joint venture state-of-the-art
rolling mill in Ras Az Zawr, Saudi Arabia. Upon completion, the rolling
mill will be the most cost-efficient in the world serving packaging and
flat-rolled products markets in the Middle East and beyond.
Ma'aden and Alcoa broke ground on their joint venture state-of-the-art rolling mill in Ras Az Zawr, Saudi Arabia. Upon completion, the rolling mill will be the most cost-efficient in the world serving packaging and flat-rolled products markets in the Middle East and beyond. First commercial production from the mill, which will have initial capacity of 380,000 metric tons a year, is scheduled in 2013. (Photo: Business Wire)
The joint venture, which is owned 74.9% by Ma′aden and 25.1% by Alcoa
with Alcoa having the right to expand to 40%, will feature the Middle
East′s first fully integrated aluminum smelter and food-grade can-sheet
rolling mill in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The joint venture also will
study further product offerings based on market opportunities and
demand. In its initial phases, the joint venture will develop a fully
integrated industrial complex, including:
A bauxite mine with an initial capacity of 4,000,000 metric tons per
year (mtpy);
An alumina refinery with an initial capacity of 1.8 ? 2.0 million mtpy;
An aluminum smelter with an initial capacity of 740,000 mtpy;
A rolling mill, with initial capacity of 380,000 mtpy.
First commercial production from smelter and mill is scheduled in 2013.
First production from the mine and refinery is set for 2014. Alcoa will
supply alumina to the smelter in the interim period. Total project cost
is expected to be approximately SAR 40.5 billion ($US 10.8 billion).
The rolling mill ground breaking ceremony was attended by Abdullah Al
Saif, Chairman of the Board of Ma′aden; Khalid Al-Mudaifer, President
and CEO of Ma'aden; Abdullah Busfar, Vice President - Aluminium SBU
Ma'aden; Alcoa Chairman and CEO Klaus Kleinfeld; and Helmut Wieser,
Alcoa Executive Vice President and Group President of Alcoa Global
Rolled Products.
'The project is very well on schedule,? said Ma′aden′s Khalid
Al-Mudaifer. 'Ma'aden is helping implement technology transfer to the
kingdom and putting the foundation of the industry in the country.'
'Demand for high-quality rolled aluminum products is strong everywhere
in the world ? especially here in the Middle East,? said Alcoa′s Klaus
Kleinfeld. 'The potential for all elements of this project is immense
and we are making swift progress to capture the opportunities.?
About Ma′aden
Ma′aden was established as a Saudi Arabian joint stock company in March
1997 to facilitate the development of Saudi Arabia′s non-petroleum
mineral resources and to diversify the Kingdom′s economy away from the
petroleum and petrochemical sectors. Ma′aden is engaged in the
development, advancement and improvement of all aspects of the mineral
industry, mineral products and by-products and related industries in
Saudi Arabia. In July 2008, Ma′aden offered 50 percent of the company′s
shares for subscription in a successful SAR 9.25 billion Initial Public
Offering. Ma′aden has progressed towards realizing its vision of
building a world-class mineral enterprise and its mission of being a
profitable, publicly owned, international mining company, while
maintaining the utmost concern for human resources, health and safety,
environmental and social issues.
About Alcoa
Alcoa is the world′s leading producer of primary and fabricated
aluminum, as well as the world′s largest miner of bauxite and refiner of
alumina. In addition to inventing the modern-day aluminum industry,
Alcoa innovation has been behind major milestones in the aerospace,
automotive, packaging, building and construction, commercial
transportation, consumer electronics and industrial markets over the
past 120 years. Among the solutions Alcoa markets are flat-rolled
products, hard alloy extrusions, and forgings, as well as Alcoa ® wheels,
fastening systems, precision and investment castings, and building
systems in addition to its expertise in other light metals such as
titanium and nickel-based super alloys. Sustainability is an integral
part of Alcoa′s operating practices and the product design and
engineering it provides to customers. Alcoa has been a member of the Dow
Jones Sustainability Index for nine consecutive years and approximately
75 percent of all of the aluminum ever produced since 1888 is still in
active use today. Alcoa employs approximately 59,000 people in 31
countries across the world. More information can be found at www.alcoa.com.
About Ras Az Zawr
Ras Az Zawr is the location for Ma′aden's minerals industry complex, a
77 square km site, 90km north of Al Jubail on the Arabian Gulf coast of
Saudi Arabia. In addition to housing the alumina refinery, aluminum
smelter and rolling mill for the Ma′aden-Alcoa joint venture, it is also
the site for Ma′aden Phosphate Company's integrated chemical and
fertilizer facility currently near completion. The phosphate complex
consists of a phosphoric acid plant, a sulphuric acid plant, an ammonia
plant, a DAP granulation plant, a co-generation plant and desalination
plant, as well as related infrastructure.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6693307&lang=en
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