EGA signs deal with Colombian firm for the export of aluminium production technology

An Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) employee at the company's Taweelah refinery. EGA signed an agreement with NEO Aluminio Colombia, which could lead to the export of EGA’s UAE developed state-of-the art technology. Image courtesy of EGAShow less

Emirates Global Aluminium, the largest industrial company in the UAE outside oil and gas, signed an agreement with NEO Aluminio Colombia, which could lead to the export of EGA’s UAE-developed technology for the first aluminium production facility in Colombia.

The agreement paves the way for EGA licensing its aluminium smelting technology to NEO Aluminio Colombia, as well as providing technical services to the Colombian company during the construction and ramp-up of the project.

“We look forward to growing this project with NEO Aluminio Colombia and ultimately to the successful application of EGA’s UAE-developed industrial technology in their project,” Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, chief executive of EGA, said.

NEO Aluminio Colombia is currently assessing the feasibility of building a low carbon aluminium production facility, the Green Aluminium Transformation Complex for Colombia, in the northwest of the country.

The project, with a production capacity of 540,000 tonnes of aluminium per year, is expected to create new jobs and boost the country's economy.

“After a global search, we have selected EGA based on the performance of their technology, the depth of their technological expertise, and their track record in some of the world’s most significant recent greenfield and brownfield production developments,” Carlos Santiago, chief executive of NEO Aluminio Colombia, said.

NEO Aluminio Colombia is part of the NEO Group, which manufactures aluminium vehicle wheels and electrical cables in Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela that are sold within and beyond South America.

EGA is jointly owned by Abu Dhabi’s strategic investment arm, Mubadala Investment Company, and the Investment Corporation of Dubai. It has more than 400 customers in over 50 countries. In 2019, EGA sold 2.6 million tonnes of cast metal.

In 2016, EGA became the first UAE industrial company to license its core process technology internationally. Aluminium Bahrain’s Line 6 expansion project, built with EGA’s DX+ Ultra technology, began production in December 2018, according to the company.

“One of our strategic priorities is to make EGA the technology partner of choice for new smelter projects, building on our success in Bahrain and strengthening technology sales as a revenue stream for our company.”