Minerals - Rapid development of the aluminum extrusion industry in the Gulf region

Due to the abundant energy in the Gulf region, the primary aluminum industry has been greatly developed and will move forward at a faster rate in the next few years. In recent years, due to the development of the regional economy and the rise of the construction industry, the aluminum extrusion industry has experienced unprecedented development. The speed of development. The first batch of extrusion plants in the Gulf region was built in the late 1970s and was built between 1977 and 1979: Balexco, Alupco, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, specialized in extrusion Press; Arabian LightMetals, Kuwait; Gulf Extrusions, Dubai. In the Gulf region in 1980, there were only 7 extruders. Since the 1990s, the aluminum extrusion industry in the Gulf region has been developing at an unprecedented speed and has become one of the major industries in the region. In 2003, there were about 70 extrusion plants in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, Gulf States, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, which rose to 85 at the end of 2007. In 2008, the total demand for extruded materials in the region was 450 kt. Countries with major demand were Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. Because their construction industry is very active. In 2007, Saudi Arabia’s demand for architectural aluminum was 136 kt, while supply was 135 kt; in the United Arab Emirates, extrusion capacity was 180 kt/a, while demand was 131 kt; Qatar’s previous demand for building aluminum was 17 kt. a, now plans to build three or four extrusion plants, apparently more than their demand; Bukhatir Group plans to build a building aluminum plant with a production capacity of 20kt/a in Abu Dhabi. It was put into production in the first half of 2009. The installed capacity of these extrusion plants in the Gulf region is very high. About half of the extruders are supplied by SMS Meer and many auxiliary equipment are also from Germany. These extrusion plants are built according to international standards and can produce internationally first-class products. They can meet European standards. Once the output meets the needs of the region, they can be exported and become international aluminum extrusion markets. A strong competitor can also produce industrial aluminum for the automotive industry and machinery manufacturing. (Wang Zhutang)