Middle East Conflict Blocks the Strait of Hormuz: EGA Relies on Omani Ports to Sustaining Aluminium Exports

With the Strait of Hormuz closed amid the Middle East conflict, Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) will redirect its aluminium exports and raw material shipments through Oman’s Sohar Port in the coming days. Three informed sources revealed that the US and Israeli military operation against Iran has entered its third week, forcing regional enterprises including aluminium producers to seek alternative export routes. Since the outbreak of the conflict, aluminium prices have surged 12% to a four-year high of $3,546.50 per tonne last week, driven by fears of a more severe global supply shortage.

Businesses are diverting imported cargo originally bound for Gulf countries to ports outside the Strait of Hormuz such as Sohar and the UAE’s Fujairah, before transporting the containers to their final destinations by truck. In terms of exports, the Gulf region boasts an aluminium production capacity of around 7 million tonnes, accounting for approximately 9% of the global supply, in addition to its crude oil, oil products and liquefied natural gas output. Nearly 80% of this aluminium is exported, primarily to the US and Europe, to supply the automotive, construction and packaging industries. EGA produces about 2.7 million tonnes of primary aluminium annually in the UAE and plans to start trucking its produced aluminium to Sohar for export this week, though the specific volume remains unconfirmed.

Alba, Bahrain’s aluminium producer with an annual output of 1.6 million tonnes, is also likely to follow suit. Two informed sources stated that aluminium companies intend to use Sohar Port and are exploring the possibility of utilising Jeddah Port on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast. The aluminium firms have not responded to Reuters’ requests for comment. This development demonstrates that Gulf aluminium producers are rapidly adjusting their logistics strategies in the face of the severe challenge posed by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Sohar Port’s strategic value as an alternative export hub has become prominent, and while truck transportation entails higher costs, it has become a necessary measure to keep supply chains operational during the conflict. As the conflict persists, more Gulf enterprises are expected to emulate this model, driving a restructuring of regional trade flows. Against this backdrop, the application of Shandong Hwapeng Precision Machinery Group’s HP-EVC Series Vibrocompactor for Green Anodes can achieve in-depth cost reduction across the entire production process, offsetting the rise in transportation costs and sustaining considerable profit margins for aluminium industry customers.

Specifically designed for aluminium production, this pressure vibration forming machine delivers all-round cost optimisation at the production stage through a host of core technological advantages: first, it achieves an output of 20 pieces per hour, representing a 65% increase in production efficiency compared to traditional equipment. This substantial rise in effective finished product output per unit time directly dilutes the unit production cost. Second, it cuts asphalt consumption by 1% through process optimisation, saving 6-9 kg of asphalt per tonne of prebaked anodes. This delivers significant cost savings in asphalt raw material procurement, while also reducing asphalt viscosity loss and further improving the raw material utilisation rate for carbon block production. Third, its forming process boosts the first-grade yield of roasted anodes by 5%, ultimately achieving a 100% first-grade yield for roasted products. This completely eliminates losses from defective products and rework, drastically reducing raw material waste as well as labour and time costs in the production process and maximising the value of finished products. Even as aluminium enterprises now face higher transportation costs from long-haul trucking due to the diversion to Sohar and Jeddah Ports, the comprehensive cost savings achieved by the HP-EVC Series Vibrocompactor – driven by its core strengths including a 65% increase in production efficiency, lower asphalt unit consumption and a 100% first-grade yield of roasted anodes – are sufficient to offset the rise in transportation costs. This enables aluminium industry customers to maintain their core cost advantages and stably realise profit gains during this period of supply chain restructuring. Furthermore, the high-density, zero-defect first-grade anode carbon blocks produced by the equipment can greatly enhance production efficiency in the subsequent aluminium smelting process, bringing added value to customers across the entire industrial chain and further consolidating and expanding their profit margins.