Emirates International Aluminum Company announced yesterday to achieve a modified profit of 2.5 billion dirhams for 2019, before deduction of interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
The year 2019 presented great challenges for the aluminum industry on the global level, with the decrease in the prices of final metal products, and the rise in the prices of raw materials and aluminum in the first half of the year, driven by a lack of global supplies of aluminum, due to the reduction in the production of a major refinery in Brazil, which affected margins and financial results In the sector, however, despite the market conditions, the smelter’s profit margin for Emirates International Aluminum - before calculating interest, taxes and consumption for the year 2019 - was equivalent to 14%, to be ranked among the first ranks in the world.
Emirates International Aluminum Company has also maintained its position as the largest producer of high-quality aluminum in the world in terms of sales volume of value-added products to external customers, which amounted to 2.3 million tons, or 87.4% of total sales, sold to more than 400 customers in more than 50 countries.
Value-added products attract prices higher than the global average achieved by standard aluminum, enabling Emirates International Aluminum to increase the value of its aluminum production.
The company sold 2.6 million tons of metal in 2019, compared to 2.64 million tons in 2018, but the company gained a greater market share in many of the major markets and with major customers.
Domestic sales in the final aluminum products industry reached 294,000 tons, an increase of 7%.
The cash generated from operating activities was AED 4.1 billion, which was delivered through improved operational efficiency. While the company continued to improve working capital, it reduced by more than 1.5 billion dirhams in 2019, generating additional funds for the company.
"The year 2019 was full of challenges in the global aluminum industry sector, while the company took strong measures to reduce costs, improve operational efficiency, and increase liquidity generation," the CEO of Emirates World Aluminum, Abdel Nasser bin Kalban, said in a statement yesterday.
He added that «the main strengths of the company lie in the efficiency of its smelting technology and market leadership in terms of value-added products, enabling the company to achieve competitive adjusted profit margins before deduction of interest, taxes, depreciation and consumption.
Al Taweelah Aluminum Refinery, a subsidiary of Emirates International Aluminum Company, started its production operations in April 2019, producing 1.1 million tons in 2019. Also, "Guinea Alumina Corporation", a mining company owned by Emirates International Aluminum, began exporting bauxite in August 2019, reaching a total of Raw bauxite extracted 1.7 million tons in 2019.
The safety performance of Emirates World Aluminum continued to be positive, compared to international industrial standards in 2019, where the average recurrence of the total recordable accidents in the company reached 1.9 per million working hours in 2019, compared to 1.27 in 2018.
Emiratization rate
Emirates World Aluminum ended the year 2019 with the highest rate of Emiratization, with citizens currently occupying about 39.8% of the targeted jobs in the company, which includes 1100 Emirati employees, about 840 of them are under the age of 35 years. Women also occupy about 17% of the supervisory positions in the company.
The company made further progress in 2019 with regard to the alignment of its institutional sustainability approach, with performance standards specifically developed for the aluminum industry, through the Aluminum Management Initiative. In May, Al Taweelah, an affiliate of Emirates World Aluminum, became the first site in the Middle East to receive an ASI Performance Standards Certificate.