Alcan Signs Heads Of Agreement For $7B Saudi JV

Alcan has signed a heads-of-agreement with Saudi Arabian mining company Ma’aden for a proposed $7 billion integrated aluminum “mine-to-metal” project including bauxite mining, alumina refining, power generation and aluminum
smelting.

Montreal-based Alcan said it would hold a 49% stake in the project and provide technology and operating management support, with Ma’aden owning the remaining 51% stake.

As one of the world’s largest vertically integrated projects of its kind, the initial operations would feature a power plant delivering 1,400 megawatts; a 90-million-metric-ton bauxite reserve in Az Zabirah in northern Saudi Arabia representing a potential 30 years of mining; an alumina refinery with a capacity of 1,600,000 tons a year; an aluminum smelter
with a capacity of 720,000 tons a year, and will leverage Saudi Arabia’s port facilities and infrastructure.

First metal would be expected during the first quarter of 2011, and first alumina a year later.