The local Emirates Aluminium (Emal) is still evaluating bids for the project to boost the capacity of a captive power plant at its complex in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad).

Emal initially received bids in February, but asked firms to resubmit prices due to the bids being too high over budget.

MEED reported in May that Emal had received the revised prices, and the aluminium producer is still evaluating the proposals. The client has held tender clarification meetings with some of the bidders, but has still not made a decision on a contract award, according to sources close to the scheme.

The expansion will increase the capacity of the captive power plant by about 235MW.

It is believed that fewer than five bids were submitted for the expansion.

South Korea’s Samsung C&T recently completed work on the $625m second-phase expansion of the captive power plant. The expansion has increased the capacity of the plant from 2,000MW to 3,100MW. Samsung C&T was the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the expansion, and the US’ GE provided turbines for the scheme.

The second-phase expansion of the Emal smelter will boost its output by 550,000 tonnes a year (t/y) to 1.3 million t/y.

In November, the US’ GE Power & Water was awarded a long-term agreement to provide services on turbines that power the aluminium smelter complex in Taweelah, Abu Dhabi.

The contractual services agreement (CSA) will extend its current services for three of the GE-supplied 9FA turbines and add the maintenance and support of two 9FA standby units. The CSA will cover requirements of spare parts, repairs and field services.