Qa'dah 17, 1431, Oct 25, 2010, SPA -- The Saudi Arabian Mining Company, Maaden and Alcoa Inc., the largest US aluminum producer, poured Sunday the first concrete for the Middle East's first fully integrated aluminum smelter and a rolling mill to produce food-grade cans, at Ras Al-Zour in the Eastern Province. “Today we have begun laying the foundations of an entirely new industry for Saudi Arabia. This is an industry that will create value for the project partners and their shareholders, numerous different opportunities for Saudi and international businesses and thousands of new direct and indirect jobs," said engineer Abdullah Busfar, vice president of Maaden Aluminum SBU and Project Management while marking the occasion First production from the smelter and rolling mill is scheduled for early 2013. Initially, the smelter will produce 740,000 metric tons of primary metal. The rolling mill will initially produce 380,000 metric tons of food-grade can sheet. Both are designed for significant expansion, according to a report published today by Arab News. In addition to the smelter and rolling mill, the second phase of the joint venture will include a bauxite mine with an initial capacity of 4 million metric tons per year and an alumina refinery with an initial capacity of 1.8 million metric tons per year. First production for mine and refinery is scheduled for early 2014. Alcoa will provide alumina feedstock for the smelter in the interim.
