City of the future


With oil and gas both finite resources, the famously cosmopolitan emirate of Abu Dhabi has been rapidly diversifying its economy. One new company, Emirates Aluminium (EMAL), is setting world-class standards for looking after its large international workforce.


A


EMAL’s Frank Briganti at the company’s onsite clinic


4 Hotline Silver Edition, 2010


bu Dhabi has built a global reputation on its ability to attract and retain both home-grown and international talent. In recent years, the arrival in Abu Dhabi of world-leading cultural institutions such the Tate and the Guggenheim museums and elite educational establishments like New York University has confirmed its status as one of the 21st century’s most vibrant and culturally diverse cities. And as capital of the United Arab Emirates, it is a major commercial and political hub – and a center for cutting-edge industry and technologies.


One of the world’s largest oil producers, Abu Dhabi


has generated its wealth from the richness of its natural resources. Yet as its 2030 vision statement makes clear, the abundance of fossil fuels won’t last forever. So – together with the rest of the United Arab Emirates – Abu Dhabi has focused its efforts on rapidly diversifying its economy.


One important element of this diversification is the


production of aluminium – an increasingly important commodity for everyday life in the modern world. With global demand for the metal expected to reach 60 million metric tonnes in the next decade, the Emirates Aluminium Company Limited (EMAL) has built and is now operating a high-tech aluminium smelter at its facility at Al Taweelah, Abu Dhabi.


Corporate responsibility Frank Briganti is EMAL’s Vice President EHSSQ. “EMAL was formed to make a significant contribution to the global demand for aluminium and as a key component of the United Arab Emirates’ diversification and industrialization strategy”, he explains.


Having made history as the largest-ever greenfield aluminium smelter project in the world, EMAL now produces high-grade, semi-finished aluminium products for a wide variety of industrial and domestic uses. “The process of aluminium smelting is fairly standard”, explains Frank. “So our economic challenge has been to design and implement world-


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28