EGA joins the First Movers Coalition to encourage decarbonisation in hard-to-abate sectors

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), the largest industrial organisation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), excluding oil and gas, joined the First Movers Coalition to support cutting-edge clean solutions in challenging industries.

The First Movers Coalition, which now has more than 50 significant companies from across the world as members, welcomed EGA as the first corporation with a headquarter in the UAE. The World Economic Forum and the US Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change, chaired by John Kerry, are members of the First Movers Coalition.

"As a UAE company, we are committed to the nation's Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative. To decarbonise our aluminium, we have to reach net zero not just in our own operations but also our supply chain. Joining the First Movers Coalition is a powerful message to suppliers in hard-to-abate sectors that we will deploy our purchasing power to encourage decarbonisation," said Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Global Aluminium.

The First Movers Coalition intends to increase hard-to-abate industries' economic competitiveness with higher-carbon alternatives by signalling market demand for low-carbon products from such sectors. These industries include aluminium, aviation, chemicals, concrete, shipping, steel, and trucking.

30 per cent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions are attributed to the difficult-to-argue industries that the First Movers Coalition targets. The partnership wants to accelerate the development and uptake of the new technologies needed to decarbonise these industries using demand.

"We welcome Emirates Global Aluminium as the first member of the First Movers Coalition from the United Arab Emirates, the host of COP28 next year. We look forward to working with EGA to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors, including aluminium," said Nancy Gillis, Head of the First Movers Coalition at the World Economic Forum.

Companies who join the First Movers Coalition agree to get a percentage of their requirements from challenging industries this decade that is low carbon. EGA wants to find vendors in the hard-to-regulate sectors that can develop new ways to cut emissions and look into special joint initiatives. EGA is a big user of chemicals, shipping, and transportation among the hard-to-abate industries.

In 2021, EGA invested over 4.5 billion dollars in its supply chain. Through collaboration with Dubai Electricity & Water Authority, EGA became the first firm in the world to manufacture aluminium for commercial purposes using solar energy last year. A little over 60 per cent of the emissions from the worldwide aluminium sector are caused by electricity production. This metal is sold by EGA under the trade name CelestiAL.

Early in 2022, EGA announced a joint strategic plan with TAQA, Dubal Holding, and EWEC to sell its natural gas-fired power facilities and replace them with grid-sourced electricity that contains a growing amount of sustainable energy. The project would advance power asset and generation optimisation, allowing EGA to significantly enhance its CelestiAL production, and unleash further solar power development in Abu Dhabi.