Power generation

Alba awards PDS contract to Siemens

Shaikh Daij: Line 6 expansion project is an important part of Alba’s growth strategy

As part of its Line 6 project, Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), one of the world’s leading aluminium smelters, has awarded Siemens the power distribution system (PDS) contract for Power Station 5 (PS 5).

Under the terms of this contract, Siemens will be responsible to design, engineer, procure, construct and commission high-voltage electrical network comprising distribution switchgears and transformers to expand the Alba’s electrical network, said a statement from the company.

Siemens will, also, provide state-of-the-art gas insulated switchgear (GIS) up to 220 kV. The design will provide Alba with a highly flexible and redundant network to ensure power availability in all scenarios, it said.

Braun: Flexible and efficient distribution is the cornerstone of a modern power supply

Braun: Flexible and efficient distribution is the cornerstone of a modern power supply

Shaikh Daij bin Salman bin Daij Al Khalifa, chairman of board of directors, Alba, said: “Our Line 6 expansion project is an important part of our growth strategy and we aim to implement an efficient and reliable distribution system for high-quality power supply.”

“We have chosen Siemens not only for their technological expertise in the power sector but also for their competitive financial bid in this project,” he said.

Wolfgang Braun, senior executive vice president, energy management, Siemens Middle East, said: “Flexible and efficient distribution is the cornerstone of a modern power supply, and we are proud that our technology will play a significant role in supporting the goals of one of Bahrain’s most important industrial businesses,” he added.

The leading aluminium smelter, also announced commitments of $1.5 billion for the commercial loan facility to finance the company’s Line 6 expansion project.

Alba had originally planned to raise between $500 million and $750 million but increased the commercial loan facility size to $1.5 billion due to heavy oversubscription. The commercial loan facility will comprise two tranches: a US dollar-denominated senior unsecured conventional term-loan facility of $882 million and a US dollar-denominated senior Shari’ah-compliant facility of $618 million.

Expected to start metal production in early 2019, Line 6 expansion project will boost the per-annum production by 540,000 metric tonnes upon its full ramp-up, bringing Alba’s total production capacity to 1,500,000 metric tonnes per annum to make Alba the world’s largest single-site aluminium smelter.