Wednesday, April 9th, 2008

Aluminium conference showcases Oman business benefits

REPRESENTATIVES from more than 24 countries were officially welcomed by His Excellency Maqbool bin Ali bin Sultan, Minister of Commerce and Industry, on Wednesday 9 April at the opening ceremony for the first Global Foil Roller Conference, hosted by Sohar Aluminium.

Held from 9-12 April at the Barr al Jissah Resort, the conference attracted more than 60 delegates from the international aluminium foil roller industry, keen to exchange ideas on global foil facts and sustainability issues and to learn more about the benefits of the Gulf region for the aluminium industry.

“One major objective in our long term plans is to achieve economic diversification and reduce dependence on oil,” said HE Maqbool during his opening address.

“Such an objective was behind adopting an industrial strategy that lays emphasis on mega industries that will provide long-term benefits for the economy.

“I wish to thank the management of Sohar Aluminium for generously hosting this conference and for availing us with the opportunity to demonstrate to this important sector of the international business community the spectrum and magnitude of investment and industrial opportunities that are available here in Oman.”

Organised by the European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA) and sponsored by Sohar Aluminium and the worldwide leading supplier for foil mills, Achenbach Buschhütten, the aim of the conference was to encourage international support of foil sustainability projects as well as showcase new developments in the aluminium foil industry.

“We chose Oman for the conference because of its central location between Europe and Asia and its openness towards doing business with the international community,” said EAFA President Fred McDonogh. “The response to the conference far exceeded our expectations and the delegates represented more than 70 per cent of the global foil industry.

“It was a very successful forum to explore mutual interests such as increasing global foil demand, ensuring ‘one voice’ messages on foil sustainability issues, improving visibility and communicating foil benefits to decision makers within the foil industry.”

Sohar Aluminium Chief Executive Tony Kinsman said hosting the conference was an opportunity to showcase the benefits of the company’s commitment to local business through the emerging downstream aluminium industry that is an off-shoot of the smelter’s primary aluminium production.

“We have earmarked up to 60 per cent of our annual production for local liquid metal sales, and the aluminium foil sector is a potential downstream customer that could provide numerous employment opportunities as well as economic benefits to the Al Batinah region,” Mr Kinsman said.

“This conference was a chance for us to learn and understand the foil sector’s needs in terms of future production and show the delegates first-hand the advantages of doing business in Oman.”