Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the Bahrain-based international smelter, announced that the capex associated with Line 6 Expansion Project was brought-down from $3.5 billion to around $3 billion.

As per the initial bankable feasibility study, the capex for Line 6 Expansion Project - comprising the construction of a sixth pot line and power station 5 - was estimated at $3.5 billion. "However, following our on-going review in response to the lower oil prices and commodity market’s soft conditions, the capex has significantly shrinked to approximately $3 billion," the company said.

Alba’s chief executive officer Tim Murray said: “We are pleased to arrive at a lower capex as that will reduce the debt burden when financing the construction of the sixth pot line and power station 5. The project has been gaining, recently, significant momentum and our Line 6 team is gearing-up on all fronts.”

Alba’s Line 6 Expansion Project timeline remains on track with “first hot metal” scheduled for in early January 2019.  Alba is now looking at different scenarios in the structuring and financing for the project, a statement said. – TradeArabia News Service