Bahrain's Alba assesses damage after Iran strikes aluminium plants
March 29 (Reuters) - Aluminium Bahrain ALBH.BH, which runs one of the world's largest smelters, said on Sunday it was assessing the damage following Iranian strikes on the facility and another major aluminium producer in the United Arab Emirates.
Two employees at Aluminium Bahrain were hurt in Saturday's attack, the state-controlled company said, while regional peer Emirates Global Aluminium's site sustained significant damage from missile and drone strikes the same day.
Most Gulf aluminium producers, which account for about 9% of global supply, have been unable to ship to world markets via their normal channels since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began due to Tehran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
EGA is the Middle East's largest producer of the metal and Alba operates the world's largest single-site smelter.
MAJOR REGIONAL PRODUCERS TARGETED
The smelter attacks are part of a broader Iranian assault on the Gulf's critical economic infrastructure, which has targeted oil refineries, commercial ports, airports and shipping lanes.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said it had targeted Alba and EGA's Al Taweelah aluminium smelter in response to attacks on two Iranian steel plants, citing ties to U.S. military and aeronautics firms.
Both firms are major suppliers to the global aerospace sector. EGA, which produces premium alloys used by aviation giants such as Boeing and Airbus, said last year it would build a $4 billion smelter in Oklahoma.
Earlier in March, Alba had initiated a shutdown of three aluminium smelting lines accounting for 19% of its capacity to preserve business continuity amid ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
Alba's smelter had a capacity of 1.623 million metric tons in 2025, according to its website.
EGA's Al Taweelah produced 1.6 million metric tons of cast metal in 2025. The company also has an adjacent alumina refinery at Al Taweelah, which last year produced 2.4 million tons of the aluminium raw material.
EGA, which has another smelter at Jebel Ali in Dubai, said it had substantial metal stock on the water when the conflict began and stock on the ground in some overseas locations.
BAHRAIN STEEL PRODUCER DECLARES FORCE MAJEURE
Separately, Bahrain's Foulath Holding, the parent company of Bahrain Steel, declared force majeure on Saturday on its operations due to disruption caused by the conflict.
The U.S. relied on Gulf nations for 10% of its primary aluminium imports, or 171,400 metric tons, in 2025, according to data from Trade Data Monitor. The UAE was its third-biggest supplier after Canada and South Africa, shipping 157,566 tons.
In the U.S., the Midwest aluminium premium AUPc1, which consumers pay on top of the London Metal Exchange price CMAL3 for physical metal, hit a record $1.10 per lb ($2,425 per ton) on March 6, as disruption in the Gulf further tightened a market reeling from import tariffs.
