Dignitaries at the ILC event held in Bahrain

Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) has announced it is accelerating early works on the Line 6 Expansion Project to meet schedules and stay on track.

A statement to the effect was made by its chairman Shaikh Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al Khalifa following the second quarterly meeting of the board.

“Alba’s status as an international producer of high-grade aluminium will be bolstered once Line 6 Expansion Project is completed. We are pleased with the reduced capital cost and fast-paced progress of the project and, are confident of delivering the first hot metal in early January 2019,” said Sheikh Daij.

Meanwhile, a highlight of recent weeks was the holding by Alba of a series of safety, health and environment (SHE) workshops for one of its established clients, Saudi Arabia’s Aluminium Products Company (Alupco). 

The workshops were an initiative of Alba’s marketing department to enhance its existing business relations with Alupco through providing extra value complementing the technical support it gives the Saudi firm.

The workshops were organised in conjunction with Alba’s Safety, Health and Environment department and topics covered included requirements for work permits, risk assessment, industrial hygiene, firefighting practices and environment protection.

The first in the series of workshops conducted by Alba’s team was a safety training workshop titled ‘Incident Investigation Course’, which was well appreciated by Alupco’s management, an Alba statement said. 

Alba’s chief marketing officer Khalid A Latif said, “Safety is a limitless journey. We believe that safety should encompass everyone, and by extending our safety knowledge to our clients, we can spread the culture of safety to our customers and beyond.”


EXCELLENCE 

The company has received a Certificate of Excellence from R&D Carbon Switzerland, one of the leading providers of carbon electrodes technologies. It was presented on the occasion of the company having completed 10 years of outstanding performance in carbon sampling and analysis.

Latif and the manager for customer technical services, Hussain Al Malali, congratulated the laboratory team at a ceremony.

Sheikh Daij: expansion on track

Sheikh Daij: expansion on track

“We are proud that our processes and facilities adhere to, if not exceed, the highest international standards and best practices in the industry,” said Latif.

“Being recognised by a renowned establishment like the RDC is a testimony to our commitment to excellence and quality.”


NETWORKING

Alba strengthened its business relations and networking opportunities with the global aluminium industry by participating in Harbor’s 9th Aluminium Summit that was held in Chicago, USA. 

Chief executive Tim Murray delivered a keynote address that focused on the Line 6 expansion. He told participants the expansion would make Alba the largest single-site smelter in the world. 

Murray said: “Alba, through its Line 6 Expansion Project, is confident of building an enduring and successful future for Bahrain and its economy. While we look forward to producing and delivering aluminium to meet global demands, we also believe it is necessary for us to build on networking opportunities with key players in the industry which we intend to achieve via our participation in this summit.”  

Alba was also represented at the summit by its chief marketing officer Latif, acting chief operations officer Amin Sultanp, Mena sales manager Mohamed Khalid, sales and marketing manager for the Americas Patrick Hudson and senior sales manager for Europe Boris Santosi.

Organised and hosted by Harbor Aluminium Intelligence, the summit is considered one of the largest aluminium market gatherings in the Americas.

Murray was also the keynote speaker at the opening of the International Leadership Conference (ILC) 2016 held in Bahrain.

In his address, titled “The Coaching Leader”, Murray highlighted Alba’s focus to remain a leader in innovation through various leadership development programmes that further enhance the proficiency of the management.

“At Alba, we believe that alignment plays a crucial role in achieving our objectives. In an ever-changing marketplace, strong leadership in challenging times is critical to our company’s growth. Coaching and mentoring are key to developing our human capital and ensure that our workforce is prepared for the future challenges facing our industry.”

ILC 2016, themed as “Leadership and Economic Growth”, focused on the relationship between leadership and economic growth and the type of leadership needed to promote economic growth from an international perspective.

 

SAFETY VISITS

In other Alba news, Alba held post-Iftar safety visits by a management team across the plant. They were conducted mainly in what Alba said were “operational and hot work areas” with the aim of improving safety awareness among workers on heat stress exhaustion and general health during the Ramadan fast. 

Alba’s chief financial officer Ali Al Baqali said, “The holy month is a challenging time, especially for those who are fasting and working outdoors or in physically demanding jobs. As management, we believe in taking extra efforts to support and appreciate our co-workers. Through the post-Iftar safety visits, we are able to boost the workers’ morale as well as help them to stay focused on Alba’s safety objectives.”

The post-iftar visits will continue throughout the month of Ramadan.