30th January 2002: His Highness the Prime Minister of Bahrain Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa officially opened Alba's coke calcining plant on Wednesday 30th January 2002 by unveiling a commemorative sculpture.

The prestigious ceremony at Alba's Marine Terminal was held to celebrate the inauguration of the US$400m project which includes:

  • a 450,000 tonnes per annum coke calcining plant;

  • a 41,000 cu.m per day seawater desalination plant;

  • the upgrading of the company's jetty and materials handling facilities.

Government Ministers, Ambassadors and other distinguished guests joined the audience of 300 which was addressed by the Minister of Oil & Alba Chairman His Excellency Shaikh Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa. In his speech, he said: "This plant, costing US$400m, is a unique addition to the industrial development of Bahrain and will have substantial benefits for Alba and the national economy."

These benefits include:

  • By calcining the coke in Bahrain, instead of importing calcined coke, there are substantial cost savings;

  • Because the calciner can produce twice Alba's requirement for calcined coke, the company can export around 225,000 tonnes per annum for consumption around the world - making this project a revenue earner;

  • By utilising waste heat from the calcining process, this project will produce 41,000 cu. m per day of potable water for Bahrain's water network to meet the growing demand in the country;

  • Because this project involved the upgrading of the jetty facility, ships of up to 60,000 tonnes can now berth at Alba's marine terminal - with savings in transportation costs.

Following the ceremony, His Highness the Prime Minister toured the calcining plant.

Carbon anodes produced from Alba's calcined coke were first used in the potlines last August. Since this time, and following subsequent trials, the performance of the anodes has been very successful. As a result, since the start of February, all the anodes produced use Alba's calcined coke.

-Ends-

© Press Release 2005