Siemens inks long-term power services contract for new power block at EGA’s aluminium smelter in Dubai 

Emirates Global Aluminum (EGA), the world’s largest ‘premium aluminum’ producer, and Siemens announced the first power services agreement for an H-class gas turbine in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). With the new 20-year service agreement, Siemens will provide maintenance and repairs as well as onsite personnel support for the gas turbine and its generator at the planned over  600-megawatt (MW) combined cycle project feeding EGA’s Jebel Ali power plant in Dubai.

The power block will see the first use of Siemens H-class technology by the aluminum smelting industry anywhere in the world. Siemens’ power generation services will offer industry leading flexibility and reliability, allowing the power plant to maintain stable power production.

“This services deal supports the first use of Siemens’ H-class turbine technology in the UAE, and the first use in an aluminum facility globally. We have been successfully supporting industrial customers for many years, and we fully understand the vital role that reliable energy plays in enabling a company such as EGA through its shareholders to reach its business goals,” said Gianluigi Di Giovanni, Senior Executive Vice President of Siemens Power Generation Services in the Middle East and North Africa. “Our power services set-up in the UAE will ensure the highest levels of reliability and availability of the gas turbine, provide excellent engineering resources and offer around-the-clock technical support to EGA.”

As part of the agreement, Siemens will offer its Power Diagnostic Services, part of the company’s Omnivise digital services portfolio, designed to remotely monitor and detect abnormal operating conditions of equipment. It helps power plant operators react quickly and proactively to avoid unscheduled downtime and production losses. Siemens monitoring experts can remotely solve more than 85 percent of all alarms without a service team doing troubleshooting onsite. Reduced downtime and fewer turbine visits result in a higher availability and reliability of the energy assets.

The new power block is being developed by a joint venture of Mubadala and Dubal Holding. EGA intends to buy the facility’s output for 25 years following commissioning.

The shareholders of the joint venture signed an agreement in November with Siemens to install the UAE’s first combined cycle H-class gas turbine at the new power block.

The new power block is set to boost the efficiency of power production at EGA’s Jebel Ali smelter, lowering emissions and reducing the consumption of natural gas. The H-class power plant is expected to lower greenhouse gas emissions from EGA's power generation at Jebel Ali by some 10 percent. NOx emissions are expected to be reduced by 58 percent.

The aluminum market is projected to grow significantly due to increasing demand from major industries, witnessing an annual growth rate of 6.48 percent until the end of 2023, according to Aluminum Market Research Report. EGA produces around 4 percent of the world’s total production, and is the largest industrial company in the UAE outside the oil and gas sector.

Siemens Gas and Power (GP) is a global pacesetter in energy, helping customers to meet the evolving demands of today’s industries and societies. GP comprises broad competencies across the entire energy value chain and offers a uniquely comprehensive portfolio for utilities, independent power producers, transmission system operators and the oil and gas industry. Products, solutions and services address the extraction, processing and the transport of oil and gas as well as power generation in central and distributed thermal power plants and power transmission in grids. With global headquarters in Houston in the U.S. and more than 64,000 employees in over 80 countries, Siemens Gas and Power has a presence across the globe and is a leading innovator for the energy systems of today and tomorrow, as it has been for more than 150 years.