Abu Dhabi Ports has signed a 50-year Musataha Agreement with Emirates Aluminium Rolling (Emiroll), to set up a manufacturing plant with a total investment of Dh440 million ($120 million) in Khalifa Industrial Zone (Kizad).

Emiroll a joint venture between Dubal Holding, Dubai Investment Industries, a subsidiary of Dubai Investments, and Madar Aluminium Rolling Singapore (Mars).

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), an existing investor in Khalifa Industrial Zone, will provide Emiroll with raw molten aluminium to produce aluminium rolled products, further boosting the UAE’s aluminium downstream industries to meet global demand and contribute to Abu Dhabi’s economic diversification plan.

The agreement was signed on behalf of Emiroll  by Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, CEO of Dubal Holding, and Mana Al Mulla, CEO of Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi.

Expected to go on-stream by the third quarter of 2017, the new plant on the 83,554.58 sq m plot will produce 65,000 tonnes of aluminium coils per annum, including 45,000 tonnes of cold-rolled and 20,000 tonnes of hot-rolled aluminium for applications in downstream industries, such as automotive body parts, roller-shutters, garage castings, container trays, cans and aerosols.

Al Mulla said: “Abu Dhabi Ports’ collaboration with Emiroll aims to bolster the UAE’s downstream industries and expand the reach of the Capital’s export activities. This venture will see more rolled products be produced with the support of EGA and is a great example of local entities joining forces to support the government’s vision of economic diversification and further position Abu Dhabi as a hub of integrated industrial excellence.

“In 2015, the UAE was ranked the world›s fourth largest aluminium producer, accounting for over 50 per cent of the Gulf region’s aluminium output. We are proud to have played a role in facilitating the production of such a valuable metal that is in high demand across the globe.”

Bin Kalban said: “Signing off the agreement with Abu Dhabi Ports for the long-term lease of the proposed plant site is a key milestone achieved within the agreed project timeline. I wish to congratulate the entire team for this significant achievement and also wish to thank the Abu Dhabi Ports management for their high-level professional support and necessary guidance.”

“Emiroll is one of our projects aiming to boost the domestic consumption of EGA aluminium and thereby support the local economy through value addition, creation of more jobs locally and also support the promotion of an aluminium cluster in the UAE. I’m confident that Emiroll, once realised, will represent a shining example of cooperation among Emirati entities,” he added.

Established in 2006, Abu Dhabi Ports celebrates ten years of innovation, growth and partnership embarking on another decade of facilitating economic diversification through enabling maritime and trade development. This is done by delivering high quality maritime services, supporting partners’ infrastructure projects and setting up new companies and joint ventures in the ports and logistics sectors.

The flagship state-of-the-art Khalifa Port and Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad) play a pivotal role in the diversification of the economy. Khalifa Port’s semi-automated container terminal handles all of Abu Dhabi’s container traffic, after its transfer from Zayed Port, the historic port in the city centre.

Khalifa Port’s current capacity is 2.5 million TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units/containers) and 12 million tonnes of general cargo. Further phases of development will occur as market demand requires. When all phases are complete, Khalifa Port will be able to handle 15 million TEUs and 35 million tonnes of general cargo per year.

Abu Dhabi Ports manages ten commercial, logistics, community and leisure ports, and Khalifa Industrial Zone that is serving a range of logistics and manufacturing investors. Abu Dhabi Ports is boosting Abu Dhabi’s economic growth and diversification, in line with the Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision.