Arab News, Thursday, Feb 23, 2023 | Sha'ban 03, 1444
Saudi Arabia’s Ma’aden and Bahrain’s Alba explore ways to strengthen cooperation in ESG
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabian Mining Co., and Aluminum Bahrain,
also known as Alba, have agreed to explore avenues for strengthening cooperation
in various areas including know-how and environmental, social, and governance
standards.
The decision to elevate the cooperation between
the two companies was made when Robert Wilt, CEO of Ma’aden, along with his
delegates, met Alba Chairman Shaikh Daij bin Salman bin Daij Al Khalifa and its
CEO Ali Al Baqali at the Bahrain firm’s office.
During the meeting, which also had the attendance
of Alba’s executives and Deputy CEO Abdulaziz Al Harbi, both companies discussed
the possibility of potential cooperation upstream and supply-chain
opportunities.
“We are proud of our long-standing partnership
with Ma’aden; we also look forward to continuing our dialogue on areas of mutual
interest as we work together to cement our positions as responsible aluminum
producers,” said Al-Khalifa.
He added: “Such partnerships are what makes the
Gulf Cooperation Council region a hub for responsible primary smelting and
high-grade metal in the industry.”
Wilt noted that both Ma’aden and Alba have a
collective vision to build and develop a regional aluminum powerhouse.
“By sharing ideas and knowledge, and working
together to enhance our capabilities we will set new benchmarks for the industry
in responsible operations, cost efficiency and most importantly positioning the
GCC as a key ally in bringing resilience to the global aluminum supply chain. We
look forward to strengthening our relationship and working more closely with
Alba,” said Wilt.
Earlier in January, Ma’aden had agreed to form a
joint venture with the Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund to invest in mining
assets globally.
In a regulatory filing, Ma’aden said that will own
51 percent of the venture while the Public Investment Fund will own 49 percent.
Ma’aden said the new venture’s strategy “will
initially be to invest in the iron ore, copper, nickel and lithium sectors as a
non-operating partner taking minority equity positions.”
The new company’s initial paid-up capital will
amount to SR187.5 million ($50 million), of which Ma’aden will finance SR96
million as its share of the investment.