UAE Aluminum Producer EGA Targets Deals in US Amid Tariffs
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Emirates Global Aluminium is planning additional acquisitions of U.S. assets after an initial deal last year as tariffs on metal imports into the country raise prices in that market.
The United Arab Emirates-based metals producer completed its first acquisition in the U.S. last year when it bought 80% of Spectro Alloys Corp. in Minnesota. The deal is already proving its worth by giving EGA valuable supply that avoids tariffs, CEO Abdulnasser Bin Kalban said at a conference in Dubai.
“The Midwest premium is jumping” for metal produced in such plants, Kalban said. EGA plans more investment in the U.S. and had already been evaluating two more deals even before President Donald Trump announced 25% tariffs on aluminum and steel imports, he said. The company will also look at potential deals in Europe, he said.
He didn’t specifically comment on the impact of tariffs on the company.
While EGA’s production in the U.S. will help lessen the impact of tariffs on the company, its aluminum produced in the UAE and shipped to the U.S. will be subject to the levies. America is heavily reliant on aluminum imports to meet domestic demand, with much of that supply coming from Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Mexico.
The biggest aluminum producer in the Middle East will start a 170,000 ton-a-year smelter for recycled aluminum in Dubai in December, which is slightly ahead of schedule, Kalban said. The company wants to produce metal in a more sustainable way by investing in plants for recycling and using renewable energy to power its facilities where possible, he added.
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