EMAL products rated for sustainable building by LEED and DGNB

Development marks an important milestone in achieving sustainability ambitions

United Arab Emirates, 25 February 2015: Products manufactured by Emirates Aluminium Company Limited PJSC (“EMAL”) – an operating subsidiary of Emirates Global Aluminium PJSC (“EGA”) and the world’s largest single-site primary aluminium smelter – have been declared suitable for sustainable building practices, as per the applicable criteria defined by two internationally acclaimed bodies, namely:

• The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (“LEED”) green building programme launched by the US Green Building Council (“USGBC”); and
• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen e.V. (“DGNB”, which translates as the German Sustainable Building Council), which strongly promotes sustainable and economically efficient building.

The declaration follows rigorous assessment of EMAL’s products by an independent agency, GCAS. “These expert assessments and declarations provide a competitive advantage for EMAL’s products, both in catering for our existing markets and acquiring niche markets for our value-added products,” says Abdulla Kalban (Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer). “They will also instill stronger and more sustained customer confidence – which is vital in today’s globalised and industrialised economy where environmental protection is a prime area of focus.”

Products manufactured by EGA’s other operating subsidiary in the midstream aluminium sector, Dubai Aluminium PJSC (“DUBAL”), were declared suitable for sustainable building practices by the same two organisations in 2013.

The combined DUBAL-EMAL portfolio comprises more than 500 individual, high quality primary aluminium products, many of which are made to customer specifications. Products are manufactured in three main categories: high purity and foundry re-melt products (for electronics and aerospace and automotive applications respectively); rolled products (for packaging, lithographic sheets and the automotive industry); and billets for extrusion and forging (for construction, industrial, transportation and automotive purposes). Over 350 customers are served in at least 68 countries, predominantly in Asia, Europe, the MENA region and the Americas.

“The LEED and DGNB ratings of EMAL products are a major development for EGA, as about 46 per cent of our total annual production comprises aluminium billets that are used extensively by extruders to produce construction components – such as window and door frames,” says Walid Al Attar (Chief Marketing Officer). “The international rating of suitability for use in sustainable building practices places the products manufactured by both DUBAL and EMAL in a strong position to be specified by end-users in the building and construction industry worldwide.”

Al Attar adds that the LEED and DGNB sustainability ratings also represent a key differentiator in the local market, where billets account for the major proportion of annual sales. “New laws have been enacted in the UAE, whereby the incorporation of sustainable measures is mandatory in all new construction projects in the Emirates as of 2014,” he explains. “The suitability of our products is tangible evidence of EGA’s support for the government’s green building agenda, simultaneously confirming the success of our efforts to produce ‘green metal’ as part of our overall sustainable business philosophy and supporting strategies to minimise the impact of our business on the environment.”