Commercial operations at Oman Aluminium Rolling Company (OARC) are expected to begin in 2014 with the plant hitting its full 160,000-tonne production capacity by 2019, according to company CEO Buddy Stemple. Speaking at the Arabal aluminium conference at the Grand Hyatt Muscat on Tuesday, Stemple said production will begin at 'roughly' 55,000 tonnes per year, before building up to its full capacity as part of a five-year 'ramping up' process.
Construction on the US$387mn plant began in August 2011 close to the Sohar Aluminium smelter in the Sohar Industrial Area. A US$193 term loan from National Bank of Oman (NBO) and BankDhofar to part-finance the project was signed in June this year.
Once completed, Oman Aluminium Rolling will produce 'light gauge' aluminium coils for use in a variety of industries including air conditioning, food and pharmaceutical packaging, foil, automotive and light industrial processes.
Stemple said the plant will create 275 permanent jobs, will employ 1,200 people during construction and has the potential for further job creation in spin-off and service industries.
He said, "The other thing this project adds is the potential for more downstream opportunities. We can introduce further operations in the future, such as specialised slitting operations, to add value to the coils. "We could do a coil paint line, or special coatings. We will have various support industries needed to make the plant run."
OARC will partner Bahrain-based aluminium rolling firm Gulf Aluminium Rolling Mill Company (GARMCO) in its early stages to get the products accepted in the market, he added. Stemple said, "GARMCO is our partner on the commercial side in two phases. We will provide the products to GARMCO as an off-take which they will then reduce further to a much lighter material. They'll also help us establish our marketing arm in the early years of the product."
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