The world’s leading aluminum producer, Alcoa Inc. (AA), has achieved a significant safety milestone in its joint venture with Saudi Arabian mining company Ma’aden. The Ma’aden Alcoa joint venture recorded 25 million hours of work without losing a work day due to injury while constructing an aluminum smelter at Ras Al Khair in Saudi Arabia.
The safety milestone was accomplished by 39 construction companies with a workforce consisting of people from various cultures, languages and nations.
The joint venture is developing a fully integrated aluminum complex, which includes an aluminum smelter with a capacity of 740,000 metric tons a year, and expects to complete the project by 2013. The workforce involved with the project has grown rapidly to 12,400 workers from 200 at the beginning of the period, which makes the achievement even more remarkable.
The Ma’aden Alcoa joint venture is building a fully integrated industrial complex to supply primary aluminum, alumina and aluminum products. The complex, once completed, will be the lowest-cost supplier of these products in the world and will cater to emerging markets in the Middle East and other regions.
The complex will consist of a bauxite mine whose initial capacity will be 4 million metric tons a year, an alumina refinery with a preliminary capacity of 1.8 million metric tons per year and an aluminum smelter as mentioned earlier. It would also include a rolling mill which will produce food grade can sheet, the first of its kind in the Middle East and among the most technically advanced in the world.
The smelter and the mill are scheduled to begin commercial production in 2013. The mine and refinery are expected to begin commercial production in 2014. Till then, Alcoa will supply alumina for the smelter.
Pennsylvania-based Alcoa is among the world’s leading producers of primary and fabricated aluminum, and alumina. It competes with Aluminum Corporation Of China Limited, or Chalco (ACH) and Rio Tinto plc. (RIO).
Currently, Alcoa maintains a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold), in line with our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock.
ALCOA INC (AA): Free Stock Analysis Report
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