The Al Taweelah Recycling plant the UAE’s largest aluminium recycling facility has officially opened its doors in Abu Dhabi, marking a transformative shift in how the region handles post-consumer aluminium scrap. Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) inaugurated the plant within its Al Taweelah industrial complex, delivering a facility with an annual production capacity of 185,000 tones per annum (tpa) of recycled aluminium.
This UAE aluminium recycling construction project directly advances the country’s circular economy ambitions. Furthermore, it ends years of domestic scrap being exported overseas for processing. The plant processes post-consumer aluminium scrap into premium-grade billets and T-bars sold under EGA’s RevivAL product brand.
Additionally, it produces CelestiAL-R and MinimAL-R blended low-carbon products for global markets. The project cost has not been publicly disclosed by EGA. However, the scale and strategic positioning of this facility signal a multi-hundred-million-dollar investment commitment.
Al Taweelah Recycling Plant Project Delivers Record-Breaking Build
Constructing the Al Taweelah recycling plant required 4 million hours of work. Remarkably, it achieved zero injuries requiring time off work throughout. Therefore, the project sets a strong safety benchmark for industrial construction in the region. The project used more than 26,300 cubic metres of concrete and over 4,600 tonnes of structural steel.
To put that in perspective, the concrete alone exceeds the volume of ten Olympic swimming pools. Moreover, the plant’s scrap sorting system can shred and segregate up to 150,000 tonnes of scrap per year, using magnetic, mechanical, and X-ray segregation technology. Consequently, the facility is not simply a melting operation but an advanced sorting and metallurgical production centre.
The plant is equipped with a 90,000-tonne-per-year melting furnace, which operates at approximately 750 degrees Celsius and uses heat regeneration burners to further improve efficiency. Two 90-tonne holding furnaces blend recycled metal with primary aluminium to adjust chemistry. Thus, the plant delivers consistent, high-specification output for demanding global customers.
The plant began producing recycled aluminium in February 2026. Final commissioning activities were temporarily suspended following an attack on Khalifa Economic Zone Abu Dhabi on 28 March and resumed in April. Notably, EGA restarted cast metal production in early May and maintained its original ramp-up timeline. Ramp-up to full production is expected to take up to six months, depending on scrap availability.
Al Taweelah Recycling Plant Construction Anchors EGA’s Global Low-Carbon Strategy
With the commissioning of Al Taweelah and the company’s planned acquisition of an 80 percent stake in Italian recycler Eco Green, EGA’s total aluminium recycling capacity has increased to more than 400,000 tonnes per year across the UAE, Europe and the United States.
Additionally, a further 200,000 tpa of capacity is under development across both regions. In Germany, EGA is expanding EGA Leichtmetall more than six-fold, with a second plant near Hannover adding 150,000 tonnes of capacity, expected to complete during 2028. Meanwhile, in Minnesota, EGA Spectro Alloys completed a 65,000-tonne-per-year expansion in 2025 and is developing a second phase to add a further 35,000 tonnes per year during 2027.
EGA CEO Abdulnasser Bin Kalban stated that the project adds a new industrial activity to EGA’s UAE operations, in line with Make it in the Emirates and the UAE’s Operation 300bn industrial growth strategy the UAE’s plan to grow the industrial sector’s contribution to GDP to AED 300 billion by 2031.
Abu Dhabi continues to cement its reputation as the Gulf’s foremost industrial construction destination. The Al Taweelah Aluminium Recycling Plant joins a growing roster of landmark manufacturing projects reshaping the emirate’s economic landscape. Notably, the Borouge 4 polyolefin expansion project, a $6.2 billion industrial construction undertaking, equally demonstrates Abu Dhabi’s unwavering commitment to world-scale manufacturing investment. Together, both projects signal a deliberate and accelerating push to diversify the UAE economy beyond hydrocarbons.
Project fact sheet
Project Name: Al Taweelah Aluminium Recycling Plant
Location: Al Taweelah industrial complex, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Developer/Owner: Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA)
Project Type: Industrial manufacturing and recycling facility
Production Capacity: 185,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of recycled aluminium
Scrap Sorting Capacity: Up to 150,000 tonnes per year
Melting Furnace Capacity: 90,000 tpa, operating at approximately 750°C with heat regeneration burners
Holding Furnaces: Two units, each with 90-tonne capacity
Concrete Used: Over 26,300 cubic metres (exceeding ten Olympic swimming pools in volume)
Structural Steel Used: Over 4,600 tonnes
Total Construction Hours: Approximately 4 million man-hours
Safety Record: Zero lost-time injuries throughout construction
Construction Commencement: Approximately 2023 (multi-year build)
First Production: February 2026
Inauguration Date: June 2026
Full Capacity Target: Within six months of inauguration, subject to scrap feedstock availability
Products Manufactured:
- RevivAL aluminium billets and T-bars
- CelestiAL-R (solar-blended)
- MinimAL-R (nuclear-blended)
Project Cost: Not publicly disclosed by EGA
Industrial Strategy Alignment: UAE Operation 300bn; Make it in the Emirates initiative
Environmental Impact: Aluminium recycling uses up to 95% less energy than primary production
Project team
Developer and Owner: Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), Abu Dhabi, UAE
Chairman: Homaid Al Shimmari
Vice Chairman: Saeed Al Tayer
Chief Executive Officer: Abdulnasser Bin Kalban
Engineering, Design, Construction, and Commissioning: Executed by EGA’s in-house project and engineering teams
International Recycling Subsidiaries Involved:
- EGA Leichtmetall (Germany);
- EGA Spectro Alloys (Minnesota, USA)
- Eco Green (Italy — 80% stake acquisition pending regulatory approval)
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