Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), among the largest aluminium companies on Earth, has selected seven banks to arrange for a US$4.9 billion loan for refinancing debt according to anonymous sources speaking to Reuters.
EGA, the product of a merger between two state-owned aluminium companies, namely Dubai Aluminium (Dubal) and Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Aluminium (Emal), is jointly owned by Abu Dhabi investment fund Mubadala and the state company Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD). EGA chose BNP Paribas, Citi, Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD, ING, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Natixis to arrange the loan. EGA has not made an official statement at the time of this writing.
EGA has been in the market to take out twelve- to fourteen-year notes on the debt accrued in financing several projects that are now operational. As the projects now have a track record for prospective lenders to inspect, EGA anticipates that it can arrange for new loans at significantly cheaper rates than when the original loans were negotiated on the projects during their planning stages. Potential lenders may also avoid pre-production risks involved in construction, permitting, and the like.
Based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, EGA is an aluminium conglomerate with interests in bauxite/alumina and primary aluminium smelting. It has a yearly production of aluminium of 2.4 million tonnes, making it one of the five largest primary aluminium producers in the world. EGA’s core operating assets are Dubai Aluminium (“DUBAL”) and Emirates Aluminium (“EMAL”). Dubal, composed of a 1 million tpa smelter, a 2,350 MW power station and other facilities, is one of the world’s largest single-site primary aluminium smelters. Emal, which is a 1.3 million tpa smelter, a 3,100 MW power station and other facilities, is the world’s largest single-site primary aluminium producer. EGA also owns Guinea Alumina Corporation, a bauxite mine and alumina refinery project in the Republic of Guinea, West Africa. EGA is pursuing new opportunities in Africa, Asia and South America.