The project centred on the installation of a third ball mill. (Image source: EGA)

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), the UAE’s largest industrial company and the world’s biggest producer of “premium aluminium”, has completed a debottlenecking expansion at its Al Taweelah alumina refinery, boosting production capacity by up to 50,000 tonnes of alumina per year.

The project centred on the installation of a third ball mill, strengthening operational resilience and paving the way for future output growth at the UAE’s only alumina refinery. Ball mills grind bauxite ore into fine particles for chemical processing into alumina. The additional unit enhances throughput, reduces the risk of unplanned outages, and improves overall availability alongside the two existing mills.

Executed entirely by EGA’s in-house teams, from engineering and project management to construction and commissioning, the project was completed in under two and a half years, recording over 650,000 work hours without a single Lost Time Injury.

Since its commissioning in 2019, Al Taweelah alumina refinery has consistently operated above its nameplate capacity of 2mn tonnes per year. In 2024, the facility supplied 49% of EGA’s total alumina needs, underscoring its strategic role in the company’s integrated value chain.

Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, said, “This expansion is a key step forward for Al Taweelah alumina refinery, unlocking additional production capacity as we reorient our bauxite supply chain beyond Guinea. It further strengthens our operational resilience and unlocks capacity growth. I thank every member of the team who contributed to this success.”

PepsiCo and DP World launch US$20mn plant in Lagos, boosting jobs, food security, and investor confidence. (Image source: DP World)

The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to economic reforms and private sector-driven growth following the commissioning of a US$20 million PepsiCo and DP World production facility in Lagos

The project highlights renewed investor confidence in Nigeria’s economy and marks a significant step forward in industrial development.

The launch event was attended by senior government officials and business leaders. Speaking at the commissioning, the minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, Wale Edun, described the facility as evidence of Nigeria’s rising competitiveness under president Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reform agenda.

“This is not just about two companies. It is about what is possible when global business and Nigerian ambition come together,” said Edun. “Our reforms have restored stability, unlocked investment, and are creating the conditions for rapid, inclusive growth.”

From the private sector, PepsiCo MENAPAK President Ahmed El-Sheikh emphasised Nigeria’s central role in the company’s regional strategy. He noted that the new plant demonstrates both confidence in the country’s long-term future and a commitment to sustainable investment.

Mohammed Akoojee, CEO of DP World Sub-Saharan Africa, added, “Nigeria is a key hub for Africa’s growth. Through this partnership, we are helping to build efficient, resilient supply chains that support long-term development.”

The newly inaugurated plant will produce PepsiCo’s iconic Cheetos brand, with more than 90 percent of inputs locally sourced. It is expected to generate new employment opportunities, contribute to food security, and strengthen Nigeria’s position as a manufacturing and export hub within West Africa and under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

According to a statement issued by the Director of Information and Public Relations, Mohammed Manga, the investment represents a major boost for Nigeria’s economic growth. It also reinforces global investor confidence, opening fresh opportunities for businesses and citizens across the country.

Every year on 28 August, the UAE celebrates Emirati Women’s Day. (Image source: Al Gharbia Pipe Company)

Every year on 28 August, Emirati Women’s Day honours the achievements of women across the UAE who are contributing to national progress. This year, three young Emirati engineers at Al Gharbia Pipe Company reflect on how they are shaping the country’s industrial future through innovation, technology, and a passion for lifelong learning.

For Azeeza Al Ali, innovation engineer at Al Gharbia Pipe Company, integrating artificial intelligence into manufacturing is not just about efficiency. It is about aligning with the UAE’s wider industrial ambitions. “At Al Gharbia Pipe Company, we’ve integrated AI through smart systems like MES 4.0 to monitor production in real time, reduce downtime, and cut waste,” she explains. “AI also powers our automated quality checks and helps optimise energy and material use, supporting both efficiency and sustainability in line with UAE’s industrial goals.”

^{Azeeza Al Ali, innovation engineer at Al Gharbia Pipe Company}

Yet the journey has not been without challenges. Azeeza notes that the lack of in-house AI expertise often requires relying on external partners. “One key challenge is that we don’t have in-house AI specialists, so for every AI idea, big or small, we need to find and work with external vendors. This takes time and coordination,” she admits. “But by choosing the right partners and starting with AI projects, we’ve been able to move forward in line with the UAE’s digital transformation goals.”

Her colleague, Meera Mansour Al Bloushi, has taken a more hands-on route in the company’s innovation drive. As assistant engineer – innovation, she built a vision-guided autonomous robot from scratch, an achievement that brought together engineering disciplines and underscored her commitment to sustainability. “The goal was to build a robot that could detect and pick up objects mainly for recycling and sorting materials like paper, plastic, and general waste using a camera, image processing, and precise motor control,” she says.

^{Meera Mansour Al Bloushi, assistant engineer – innovation, Al Gharbia Pipe Company}

Although her background is in electrical work, Meera took on the mechanical design herself. “I designed the robotic arm and assembled the parts, and ensured smooth operation by integrating stepper motors, sensors, and programming the movement logic. The camera allowed the robot to ‘see’ and respond to its surroundings in real time,” she explains. In an industrial setting, she believes robots like this can “help improve efficiency and safety by automating tasks such as sorting, inspection, and material handling in hard-to-reach areas, as well as support sustainability efforts.”

Her curiosity, however, extends beyond robotics. A passionate advocate of lifelong learning, Meera continues to explore new areas that feed into her ambition of becoming a researcher and inventor. “I’m currently exploring new skills outside my main field, such as CNC turning, web application development, and electrical installation,” she says. “Even though these areas seem different, they help me grow as a well-rounded researcher and inventor. I believe being an engineer isn’t about staying in one narrow field – it’s about having broad knowledge and curiosity.”

For Mahla Mohamed Almansoori, another assistant engineer – innovation at Al Gharbia, technical competitions were the starting point of her career. She honed her skills in CNC milling while competing at the Emirates Skills National Competition, an experience that taught her the value of precision and perseverance. “My CNC milling experience and success at Emirates Skills taught me to work with precision, think creatively under pressure, and solve problems step by step,” she reflects. “At Al Gharbia, I use this mindset to find practical and efficient solutions to meet and elevate our high quality standards.”

^{Mahla Mohamed Almansoori, assistant engineer – innovation, Al Gharbia Pipe Company}

Now, she is applying that same discipline to rethinking industrial workflows. “I’m working on making manufacturing data cleaner and faster to use by automating processes and reducing manual work,” Mahla says. “I’m also improving workflows to cut waste and boost productivity, helping support the UAE’s vision for a smarter and stronger industrial sector.”

The initiative brings together a range of powerful, scalable, modular solutions designed for the Middle East’s manufacturing landscape

Omnix International, a leader in digital transformation and innovative technology solutions, is expanding its its Digitization in Manufacturing initiative to address the growing demand for intelligent, immersive, and future-ready production ecosystems and help manufacturers move into the era of Industry 5.0

Omnix’s Digitization in Manufacturing initiative brings together a range of powerful, scalable, modular solutions designed for the Middle East’s manufacuring landscape, that can be tailored for manufacturers across sectors such as oil and gas automotive, aerospace, electronics, and other manufacturing. Offferings range from smart factory enablement to enable predictive and autonomous operations, to immersive technologies to boost collaboration and workforce efficiency, digital twin platforms for real-time monitoring, optimisation and predictive maintnance, and AI-powered insights for proactive decision making. The platform offers the ability to converge immersive design, engineering-grade simulations, advanced automation, and real-time operational visibility into a single, scalable framework, with a focus on helping customers integrate the most appropriate technologies for their needs.

The move comes at a time when increasing global challenges such as supply chains, rising energy and operational costs and skilled labour shortages are accelerating the move to agile, data-driven environments.

Walid Gomaa, CEO of Omnix said, “As a long-standing provider of solutions to the manufacturing industry, we see that many companies are under pressure to work towards incorporating faster, smarter and more sustainable solutions. Our goal is to help them reimagine production through intelligent digitisation where the focus is not only on automating processes but moving away from a fragmented production ecosystem to one which is integrated, predictive and human centric.”

Rizwan Kareem, business unit manager - Industry Support Solutions at Omnix, added, “We see value being provided by offering solutions that can help bridge our customers physical and digital needs and help them raise their decision making capabilities, increase operational efficiency and strengthen their work-force productivity. It is our way of seeing manufacturers pave their path towards Industry 5.0. Our strength lies in unifying design, automation, AI and XR into a single platform that helps customers achieve their strategic goals.”

Integrated pilot environments are underway at key customer sites that are incorporating the new capabilities, across the UAE, KSA, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

The company aims to work alongside regulators, academia and technology partners to foster a regional ecosystem, enabling upskilling through immersive learning and being in a strong position to deliver full lifecycle digital services from consulting and solution architecture to deployment of change management.