Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) announced it initiated a bauxite cargo shipment today from its subsidiary Guinea Alumina Corporation (GAC) using a Liquefied Natural Gas-fuelled capsize vessel. It is the world's first-of-a-kind bauxite shipment in a cleaner-energy ship en route to China.
This move also marks a remarkable milestone achieved by EGA in line with its carbon emissions goal across operations because LNG-fuelled ships reduce up to 28 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions on a tank-to-wake basis compared to vessels using traditional marine bunker fuel. In general, the global shipping industry accounts for more than 2 per cent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.
Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, said: "Aluminium plays an essential role in decarbonisation economy-wide. It is also important how sustainably aluminium is produced, and this includes the transportation around the world of millions of tonnes of raw materials. Our approach to decarbonisation is comprehensive and extends beyond our operations to include everything from supply chain to financing. LNG-fuelled cargos are one way for us to reduce our emissions, and we are proud to pioneer this fuel for shipping bauxite. Our goal is to reach net zero by 2050, including from our supply chain, and help meet the increasing global demand for the low carbon aluminium."
EGA's bauxite shipment is onboard the Ubuntu Empathy, an LNG dual-fuelled vessel operated by Anglo-Americans and chartered by EGA.
In 2022, EGA inked a contract with one of its shipping partners, 'K' Line, to develop and implement new marine decarbonisation technologies suitable for EGA's bulk cargo shipping routes in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the Indian Ocean.
Capesize vessels are among the largest bulk cargo carriers in the world. They can be up to 300 metres long and 50 metres wide and can carry around 180 thousand tonnes of bauxite ore at a time.
Last year, using capsize vessels, EGA exported 14.1 million tonnes of wet bauxite from its Guinea subsidiary.
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