Emirates Aluminium (Emal) celebrated the arrival of the completed first potshell and the superstructure to its phase II expansion, a major step towards its goal to double its production to 1.3 million tonnes in 2014.

The Emal employees hailed the arrival of the two main components in the aluminium reduction process as a major milestone enroute to become one of the largest smelters in the world.

The components were manufactured and delivered by a local UAE supplier.

The potshells are designed to use the new DX+ Reduction technology developed by Dubai Aluminium and are longer, wider and lighter than Emal’s existing pots, said a company statement.

As a result of their design, the new potshells are more productive and efficient. 444 new pots will be installed as part of Phase II, each is capable of producing 3.2 tonnes of metal per day, a 10 per cent increase over the first phase potshells.

Saeed Fadhel Al Mazrooei, Emal’s president and CEO and Yousuf Bastaki, VP Projects, were joined by employees to witness the latest milestone.

“Piece by piece Emal’s Phase II expansion is coming together. Today we are another step closer to our goal of making Emal a global leader in the aluminium industry,” remarked Al Mazrooei.

"A top aluminium smelter complex, Emal currently uses DX Reduction cell technology to produce 750,000 tonnes of aluminium annually. This will increase to 1.3 metric million tonnes by the end of 2014 upon completion of the second phase," he stated.

While the superstructure provides support for a variety of functions enabling the pots to fully function. Once completed the pot line will be longest in the world at 1.7 km, said Bastaki.

"The phase I project plan has provided a solid foundation for Emal’s expansion. We are on time, on budget and on course to deliver a prosperous future for the Emirates," he added.-TradeArabia News Service