Aluminium Industry

Alba team visits Maaden plant

(From left) Al Baqali, Murray, Al Harbi and Al Ansari

Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the oldest smelter in the Gulf, and the region’s newest one, Saudi Arabia’s Maaden Aluminium, held talks at the latter site to explore strategic growth opportunities.

The talks took place during a visit by an Alba team led by chief executive Tim Murray who was accompanied by chief operations officer Isa Al Ansari and chief financial officer Ali Al Baqali. They held discussions with Maaden Aluminium’s president Abdulaziz A Al Harbi, and other high-ranking officials including Phillip Campbell, vice president, mine and refinery operations.

The two sides discussed common interests related to safety, operations and training. Highlighting on the visit, Murray said: “Alba shares enduring and strong business ties with Saudi Arabia. Our recent visit was to further strengthen our relationship with Maaden Aluminium and explore strategic growth opportunities.”

The Alba executives were given a tour of of Maaden’s aluminium smelter, rolling mill and alumina refinery.

The Saudi visit was preceded by Alba’s participation in prominent forums at home and abroad, providing the company opportunities to showcase its production abilities and its contribution to Bahrain’s economy.

The company was a key participant in the Euromoney GCC Financial Forum held at The Ritz Carlton Bahrain and where it demonstrated its confidence in the country as an industrial and financial destination.

The forum highlighted the role of financial services in the development of the Gulf Cooperation Council and focused especially on Bahrain and its key sectors that have relevance for the wider region such as real estate, housing and SMEs.

Alba had a dedicated stand at the event where it not only showcased its high-grade aluminium products but also provided information on its contribution to Bahrain’s economy as well as its health, safety and environmental policies and initiatives.

Commenting on Alba’s participation in the Euromoney GCC Financial Forum, Alba’s CFO, Al Baqali, said: “Alba’s spectacular growth from a regional pioneer to one of the world’s leading aluminium plants is the result of the visionary outlook and forward thinking policies of the government. We are committed to supporting noteworthy events which raise the profile of Bahrain at an international level.” Organised by Euromoney in partnership with the Economic Development Board, Bahrain, the event was the third Euromoney GCC Financial Forum and attracted a high-level audience from the region.

Earlier, Alba was among prominent participants at the prestigious TMS (The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society) 2014 annual meeting and exhibition held at San Diego, California, US.

The event brought together business leaders, engineers, scientists and other professionals in the fields of materials science and engineering from nearly 70 countries.

Alba said in a statement its participation in the event, held in the third week of February, demonstrated the company’s resolve to engage in international forums that address industry challenges, strategies and business opportunities.

The company has participated at TMS events held previously, and this time it was represented by its senior manager for customer technical support Abdulla Habib Ahmed Ali, manager for procurement and warehousing Fadhel A Wahab, manager for reduction lines 1-3 Nabeel Jallabi and manager for process control and development Hugo Levesque. 

(From left) Ali, Wahab, Jallabi and Levesque at TMS 2014 in San Diego

(From left) Ali, Wahab, Jallabi and Levesque at TMS 2014 in San Diego

Commenting on its participation in TMS 2014, Wahab said: “The TMS Annual Meeting and Exhibition is one of the most prestigious events in the metals and minerals industry and offers an excellent platform to learn and share new developments, promote solution-oriented initiatives and network with clients for future growth.” The official added that participation allowed Alba to highlight its experiences as a high-quality aluminium producer and the measures it implements to enhance work efficiency and productivity.

Alba has received the International Safety Award for 2013 performance pres- ented by the British Safety Council. The company received the honour for its commitment and efforts taken towards maintaining the safety, health and well-being of its workforce during 2013.

Widely regarded as a premier accolade, the International Safety Award given by the British Safety Council recognises and rewards organisations that are committed to corporate safety and health. The award is acknowledged by the UK Health and Safety Executive as a powerful motivator for achieving high safety standards.

Murray commented: “There is nothing more important than the safety of our employees and we believe that strong safety performance is directly linked to strong operational performance. Winning the award is a matter of pride for Alba as it recognises the success of our “Zero Accident Principles” with the belief that the ownership of safety is everyone’s responsibility.”

In other Alba news, the company conducted a technical workshop for its clients which centred on best practices to maximise results from its products.

The one-day workshop was held by Alba’s metallurgy, laboratory and customer technical support department and discussed matters related to billets and the extrusion process for customers in Malaysia and the Philippines.

It focused on the requirements of alloys and billets to facilitate superior extrusion performance at customers’ own locations and was held in co-ordination with Alba’s Asia and Pacific marketing team.

The company announced a contribution of BD100,000 towards the newly established Royal Fund for Martyrs of Duty for the families of those who have died in the line of duty for the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Royal Fund aims to lend a helping hand to the martyrs’ families and ensure social security and family stability for them.