Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has restarted 25 per cent of the reduction cells at its Al Taweelah smelter in Abu Dhabi, marking further progress in the company’s recovery from major damage caused by an attack earlier this year.
EGA said 315 of the smelter’s 1,262 reduction cells are now operating. The facility suffered significant damage on March 28 after an Iranian attack on Khalifa Economic Zone Abu Dhabi forced an emergency shutdown of EGA’s operations at the site.
The company is carrying out repairs and restarting the cells in stages as it works to restore full aluminium production during the first quarter of 2027. Work is taking place across all three potlines at the same time to speed up the recovery process.
Potline 1 was energised on May 26, followed by Potline 3 on July 13 and Potline 2 on August 3.
Each reduction cell generally requires about a week after restarting to stabilise and reach full production. Some of the hot metal produced during the recovery process is being used to restart additional cells, while the rest is being transferred to EGA’s Al Taweelah Casthouse, where it is made into finished premium aluminium products.
Around 1,000 people are currently involved in restoring hot metal production at the smelter.
EGA Chief Executive Officer Abdulnasser Bin Kalban described the restoration as the biggest challenge the company has faced. He said the recovery team was drawing on decades of experience while using new methods to accelerate the work safely.
“Our continued strong progress gives us confidence that we will reach full production in Q1 2027,” Bin Kalban said.
EGA’s Al Taweelah alumina refinery is operating at about 50 per cent capacity. The company said further increases in alumina production would depend on supply chain conditions and efforts to optimise its alumina sourcing strategy.
The recovery of aluminium production at the smelter does not depend on the refinery returning to full capacity, EGA said.
Meanwhile, work to increase production at EGA’s new Al Taweelah recycling plant is progressing according to plan. The company expects the facility to reach full production by late in the fourth quarter.
The latest restart represents a significant step in EGA’s efforts to rebuild production at one of its key facilities. The company expects the phased recovery programme to continue over the coming months as more reduction cells are repaired, restarted and returned to normal output.
