Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), a leading industrial company in the UAE outside oil and gas, has signed an agreement with Gulf Cement Company to supply a by-product from aluminium smelting over the next three years for use in cement manufacturing.

Although EGA has been supplying spent pot lining to the cement industry since 2010, the agreement is the first directly between EGA and a cement company rather than via specialist third party pre-processors, said a statement from the company.

EGA is building facilities at its Al Taweelah site to process spent pot lining so it is delivered ready to be used by cement companies as an alternative fuel and raw material, it said.

Abdulla Kalban, managing director and chief executive officer of EGA, said: “This direct agreement with Gulf Cement Company is a milestone in our drive to turn our by-products into value by using them as feedstock for other industries.”

“Finding economic uses for waste contributes to the achievement of ‘UAE Vision 2021’ environmental and economic goals and will benefit both our companies. We are glad to be working with Gulf Cement Company on this important project for the industrial sector in the UAE,” he said.

Sheikh Kayed Bin Omar Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, chairman of Gulf Cement Company, said: “Our company is a global player adopting the latest technology and we are indeed pleased to promote the utilisation of waste materials in order to preserve natural resources and protect the environment we all live in.”

“As a market leader providing sustainable, high quality products meeting international standards, we look forward to successfully implementing this agreement with EGA over the years ahead,” he said.

Spent pot lining is the used inner lining of aluminium smelting pots, which is worn out and replaced every four to five years. It contains both carbon, which is an alternative fuel, and refractory materials that survive the firing process and become part of the finished cement, said the statement.

Last year EGA supplied more spent pot lining to the UAE’s cement industry than it produced. The company has been supplying Gulf Cement Company with spent pot lining via third parties for testing since 2015, it said.

Globally, the aluminium industry produces more than one million tonnes of spent pot lining each year according to industry experts, and much is stored indefinitely. EGA has stockpiles of spent pot lining from previous years which will be gradually supplied to the cement industry.

Under the new agreement, EGA will deliver 2,000 metric tonnes of spent pot lining to Gulf Cement Company in 2018.  In 2019, the volumes will increase to 10,000 metric tonnes, followed by 15,000 metric tonnes in 2020.

Gulf Cement Company manufactures cement products to international standards (ASTM & BS EN Specifications) and has been the biggest exporter in the Gulf region for four decades, in part by adopting best practice in the protection of the environment.

The company operates the world’s biggest waste heat recovery-based power plant at a single site, which reduces its carbon dioxide emissions by up to 200,000 tonnes per year. Its measurement of the carbon footprint of its products is certified by Carbon Trust, UK, enabling Gulf Cement Company to use the Carbon Trust Carbon Footprint Label, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service