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Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) plans to spend about AED 1.5 billion ($408.4 million) to restore its damaged Al Taweelah aluminum smelter, with production expected to return to normal levels in the first quarter of 2027, the company announced Wednesday.
The UAE-based company has restarted 227 of the facility’s 1,262 reduction cells, bringing 18% of the total back online, as it works to accelerate the recovery following an Iranian attack in late March that forced the plant to shut down.
The Al Taweelah facility was significantly damaged on March 28 when Iranian attacks on the Khalifa Economic Zone Abu Dhabi led to an emergency shutdown of all facilities at the site.
Basic utilities have since been restored, while natural gas and electricity availability is expected to increase in line with the restart program, the company said in its H1 earnings report.
The Al Taweelah recycling plant, which began ramping up in February, resumed its recovery in May after the incident. It is currently operating at about 10% capacity, with full production expected by late Q4 2026.
The alumina refinery at Al Taweelah also restarted production in early July after being shut down on March 28. Output reached 50% of normal production levels within days, although further ramp-up will depend on supply-chain conditions and EGA’s alumina sourcing strategy.
EGA's production recovery comes as the company continues to deal with major logistical disruptions linked to the regional conflict.
New outbound shipments from the UAE were temporarily suspended in March, causing domestic metal inventories to rise. EGA has since established alternative export routes through ports outside the Strait of Hormuz, allowing shipment capacity to gradually increase and stockpiles to decline.
The company expects shipments to return to pre-incident levels to remain contingent on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, although it is developing alternative corridors to reduce its reliance on the waterway over the longer term.
Despite the disruption, EGA reported a 34% increase in adjusted net profit for the first half of 2026 to AED 2.5 billion, up from AED 1.8 billion a year earlier.
The company attributed the increase to higher realized aluminum prices, stronger regional premiums, lower alumina prices and cost controls. The average London Metal Exchange aluminum price rose to $3,382 per ton in H1 2026 from $2,538 a year earlier, helping cushion the impact of lower production.
Revenue, however, fell 10% to AED 13.5 billion from AED 15.1 billion, reflecting lower sales volumes after the Al Taweelah incident.
Cast metal production fell 29% to 1 million tons, while total aluminum sales dropped 32% to 939,000 tons in H1 2026.
EGA is the UAE’s largest industrial company outside oil and gas and the world’s largest premium aluminum producer, accounting for about 4% of global aluminum production and employing more than 7,000 people worldwide.
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