EGA volunteers clean up Al Taweelah beach ahead of turtle nesting

Cleaning the beach is a commitment in EGA’s Biodiversity Action Plan to protect nature. An estimated 60 thousand kilograms of washed-up debris has been collected since 2011.

United Arab Emirates: Around 50 volunteers from Emirates Global Aluminium, the largest industrial company in the United Arab Emirates outside oil and gas, have participated in a beach clean-up at the company’s Al Taweelah site ahead of the nesting of the critically-endangered Hawksbill turtle. The beach clean-up was carried out in cooperation with Abu Dhabi Center of Waste Management (Tadweer).

Nearly 100 Hawksbill turtles have laid eggs at the beach next to EGA’s Al Taweelah site since 2011 and almost 7,000 baby turtles have hatched during that time.

The beach is not accessible for public use, but over the past decade EGA employees have collected an estimated 60 thousand kilograms of rubbish washed-up from the sea.

Keeping the beach clean is one commitment under EGA’s Biodiversity Action Plan, which details EGA’s programme to conserve nature around its Al Taweelah site. Protecting biodiversity is an important aspect of sustainability in the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative’s Performance Standards. EGA’s Al Taweelah site was the first in the Middle East to be certified to the standards.

EGA employees collected 450 kilograms of wastes that included plastic bags, bottles, caps, and food wrappers.

His Excellency Dr Salem Al Kaabi, General Manager of Tadweer, said: “Our participation in this clean-up drive in collaboration with Emirates Global Aluminium is aligned with Tadweer’s strategy to support the efforts of its partners to promote environmental awareness and educate members of society on how to properly dispose of waste. Through highlighting the importance of waste reuse, recycling and segregation from the source, we aim to turn waste into an important economic resource, and ensure the highest cleanliness standards in the emirate. This will allow us to preserve the aesthetic appeal of Abu Dhabi, while creating a safer and more sustainable environment for present and future generations.”

Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer at EGA said: “Cleaning the beach is just one way we take an active role in the conservation of wildlife. The Hawksbill turtle is an iconic species and we have a special responsibility to ensure these animals can continue to nest on our beach, just as they must have done for many years before we established our operations here. We thank Tadweer for joining these efforts.”

During the nesting season, EGA’s sustainability team tracks turtle nesting patterns, monitors the beach for potential predators, rescues any sick animals, and installs protection measures to safeguard nests and ensure hatchlings have a safe passage to the sea.

The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative is a global, non-profit standards setting and certification organisation. Its members are mining and metal companies, end-users like Apple and Nespresso, and non-governmental organisations, and it aims to maximise the contribution of aluminium to a sustainable society.

ENDS

Contacts at EGA:
Simon Buerk
sbuerk@ega.ae
056 3111 536

Fatima Al Mutawa
falmutawa@ega.ae
050 327 7545

About EGA

Emirates Global Aluminium is equally-owned by Mubadala Investment Company of Abu Dhabi and the Investment Corporation of Dubai.

It is the largest industrial company in the United Arab Emirates outside the oil and gas industry, and the largest company jointly owned by the two Emirates.

EGA is an integrated aluminium producer, with operations from bauxite mining to the production of cast primary aluminium. EGA operates aluminium smelters in Jebel Ali and Al Taweelah, an alumina refinery in Al Taweelah and a bauxite mine and associated export facilities in the Republic of Guinea.

EGA’s aluminium is the second largest made-in-the UAE export after oil and gas. In 2018, EGA produced 2.6 million tonnes of cast metal. EGA is the only UAE producer and makes the UAE the fifth largest aluminium producing nation in the world.

EGA has more than 350 customers in over 60 countries. Over 80 per cent of EGA’s production is value added products, one of the highest proportions of any aluminium company in the world.

EGA’s aluminium is primarily used in the construction, automotive, packaging, aerospace and electronics industries.

Over 10 per cent of EGA’s aluminium production is sold in the UAE to around 26 downstream aluminium companies that make products with EGA’s aluminium. The growing broader aluminium sector in the UAE supports 60,950 jobs. EGA itself employs over 7,000 of these people including almost 1,200 UAE Nationals.

EGA has focused on technology development for over 25 years. EGA has used its own technology for every smelter expansion since the 1990s and has retrofitted all its older production lines. In 2016 EGA became the first UAE industrial company to licence its core industrial process technology internationally.

As a corporate citizen of the UAE, EGA aspires in all its operations to be measured amongst the world’s leading metals and mining companies in meeting its environmental and social responsibilities. In 2017, EGA became the first Middle East headquartered company to join the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative, a global programme to foster greater sustainability and transparency in the aluminium industry. In 2019, EGA’s Al Taweelah site became the first in the Middle East to receive certification from ASI for its sustainability practices and performance. ASI certification is the aluminium industry’s internationally recognised standard for environmental and social performance and governance.

EGA was formed in 2014 through the merger of Dubai Aluminium and Emirates Aluminium.

EGA’s Jebel Ali aluminium smelter began production as DUBAL in 1979. At almost five square kilometres, this site is five times bigger than Dubai Mall.

EMAL started production in 2009 and its Al Taweelah aluminium smelter was the largest single-site aluminium smelter in the world when completed. EGA’s Al Taweelah site is five times bigger than Al Maryah Island at six square kilometres.

EGA has its own power stations at both sites, producing electricity to meet its needs. EGA’s electricity generation capacity is 5,450 megawatts, making EGA the third largest electricity generator in the UAE after the Dubai and Abu Dhabi utilities. EGA also produces water through desalination units at its power plants.

EGA began production at Al Taweelah alumina refinery in April 2019. EGA’s alumina refinery is the first in the UAE and only the second in the Middle East. The project reduces the UAE’s dependence on imported alumina and will supply 40 per cent of EGA’s needs once fully ramped-up.

Bauxite exports from Guinea Alumina Corporation, EGA’s wholly-owned subsidiary in Guinea, began in August 2019. The GAC project is one of the largest greenfield investments in Guinea in over 40 years.

For more information on EGA please visit www.ega.ae.  

© Press Release 2020