Manama (ALBH): “Developing our national employees from within has been one of Alba’s founding philosophies. We didn’t promote our people for simply doing their jobs but because they have demonstrated their potential to do more for Alba”, stated Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba)’s Chief Executive Officer Ali Al Baqali at the ceremony held to mark a record-breaking 679 employees’ promotions in 2022 that was held on Sunday 08 January 2023 at the Company’s Oasis Hall.

Employees across management and non-management levels were promoted in 2022 as part of Alba’s commitment to investing in its national employees. These promotions were based on Alba’s employee development programmes -- Skill Matrix for non-supervisory level employees and Training & Development Programmes (TDP) for supervisory level employees as well as on direct promotion basis. 

Adding further, Alba’s Chief Executive Officer, Ali Al Baqali said:

“Our employees always come first, and this is an investment we are committed to for the privilege of staying in business for generations to come. We are also pleased to recognise our employees through these promotions and look forward for them to be the changer in Alba’s journey.”

It is noteworthy that Alba achieved 599,252 training hours and a company-wide 6.6% of total work hours being allocated to employee-capacity building activities in 2022 – which is well above the industry’s average rate of 5%.

-Ends-

About Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba)

At plus-1.6 million metric tonnes per annum (2022), Alba is one of the world’s largest Aluminium smelters with more than 50 years of excellence in Operations, Safety, Environment and Socio-Economic Development.

A blue-chip asset of the Kingdom of Bahrain, Alba completed five decades of commercial operations in May 2021. The Company marked its Golden Jubilee by breaking all its previous records in Safety and topped 30 million Safe working-hours without Lost Time Injury (LTI) on 01 September 2022 for the first-time in its history.

Alba produces high-quality Aluminium products in the form of Standard and Value-Added Products (VAP)s, which are exported to more than 240 global customers through its sales offices in Europe (Zurich), Asia (Hong Kong & Singapore) and subsidiary office in the U.S. Alba is dual listed on Bahrain Bourse and London Stock Exchange and its shareholders are Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company B.S.C. © (69.38%), SABIC Industrial Investments Company (SIIC) (20.62%) and General Public (10%). Alba holds globally-recognised certifications such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001, ISO 45001, IATF 16949:2016, ISO 22301:2012 Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) and ASI Performance Standard Certification and Ecovadis Certification.

As the first Aluminium smelter in the Middle East, Alba has been a major contributor to the social, industrial, and economic development of the Kingdom of Bahrain. Alba sits at the heart of a thriving Aluminium downstream sector in Bahrain, which accounts for approximately 12% of the Kingdom's GDP. As one of the biggest national companies, Alba has ensured not only the employment of Bahrain nationals (84% in 2021) but also the enhancement of their capabilities through education, training, and development initiatives at every stage of their career.

Alba is recognised as one of the top industrial companies in the world with high standards in Environment practices, Social contribution and Corporate Governance. Launched in February 2022, the Company’s ESG Roadmap outlines 6 priority areas - (1) Decarbonisation, (2) Green Energy & Aluminium, (3) Circular Economy & Secondary Aluminium, (4) Employee Welfare, (5) Collaboration & Partnership and (6) Transparency, Communications & Due Diligence. Since its inception, Alba has invested into numerous environment, sustainable and socio-economic development projects that have had a positive impact on the society. Alba’s recent projects such as the first-of-its-kind US$37.5 million zero-waste Spent Pot Lining Treatment Plant and the upcoming 5-7 MW Solar Farm Project are tangible efforts to meet the goals of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 as well as the Net Zero Carbon targets led by HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Bahrain. Alba will play a crucial role in the upcoming Aluminium Downstream Park, which will increase the contribution of non-oil sectors to the GDP of Bahrain.

Alba’s motto ‘Safety First, Safety Always’ has ensured that the Safety and well-being of its employees and contractors’ workforce remain a top priority. The Company has been recognised internationally for its excellent Safety and Health track record with awards such as the RoSPA Gold Award (9 years in a row) and International Safety Award with Merit from British Safety Council, as well as six major National Safety Council (NSC) USA awards for 2021. Alba has also been recognised for its initiatives to produce Aluminium responsibly through awards such as Top ESG performer in Bahrain by ESG Invest, Safeguard Label from Bureau Veritas and Best Corporate Governance Award by Ethical Boardroom.

Alba Power Station 5 Block 4 Expansion Project

Alba Power Station 5 (PS5) Block 4 is a Combined Cycle Power Plant that is an expansion of the existing PS5.

PS5 Block 4 Project is the addition of a fourth Block of similar 1:1:1 configuration with J-class gas turbine technology and with minimum nominal ISO rating of a 680.9 MW and includes tie into the existing 220kV Substation. The efficiency of this combined cycle power plant is much higher than the combined cycle power plants of PS3 and PS4. On completion of PS5 Block 4 Expansion Project, the nameplate capacity of PS5 will increase from 1,800 MW to 2,481 MW.

Mitsubishi Power & SEPCOIII consortium will be responsible to design, engineer, procure, construct and commission Block 4. PS5 Block 4 commercial operations are expected to begin in Q4 2024.

Alba External Grievance Mechanism

Alba’s External Grievance Mechanism receives and facilitates the resolution of any affected communities’ concerns and grievances about Alba’s Environment and Social (E&S) performance. External grievances about Alba’s E&S performance can be logged via the Alba Integrity Line - an independently operated confidential reporting hotline in multiple languages - via a toll-free phone system or via the intranet 24 hours a day.

Alba Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

 Alba’s response strategy to COVID-19 was initiated back to January 2020 in line with the guidelines of Bahrain National Taskforce for Combating Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Company was able to maintain safe operations throughout 2021 thanks to its nimble workforce – employees and contractors’ personnel.

For further details, please contact:
Eline Hilal
Director, Investor Relations, Insurance & Corporate Secretary
Investor Relations Department
E-mail:   eline.hilal@alba.com.bh
Website: www.albasmelter.com

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