BIRDS of prey are becoming regular sights at Dubai Aluminium Company (Dubal). First, there was the Falcon, a $500 million project involving the construction of a fifth potline at the Jebel Ali smelter. Then came the Eagle, a much smaller undertaking aimed at further developing the CD-200 reduction cell technology, jointly developed by Dubal and Australia's Comalco. And now it is the turn of the condor.

The Condor project was officially unveiled by Dubal on 17 February, seven weeks after work started on the $725 million expansion. Designed to optimise Dubal's existing smelter infrastructure, it involves the addition of a sixth potline with capacity of 135,000 tonnes a year (t/y) and 440-MW of combined-cycle power plant. By opting to install combined-cycle technology as part of the investment programme Dubal will not require any additional gas feedstock to fire the new potline and will significantly lower its power generating costs: while metal production is set to rise by 35 per cent, the energy cost per tonne of metal produced will be reduced by 17 per cent.

Condor shares some common features with the Falcon project, which was fully commissioned in January 1997. Both potlines five and six will use CD 200 technology. Each will comprise 240 pots. 'We are theoretically building the same potline, but in reality, it is never quite the same,' says David Baker, general manager of the Condor expansion project. 'For instance, on the new potline, the crane maintenance bay will be at the north end of the building, whereas on Falcon, it is located on the south end.'

Away from the potline works, the differences between the current expansion and the previous one are more marked. To improve throughput efficiency at the company's berth, a second vacuum unloader will be installed. This will handle the additional 270,000 t/y of alumina and 60,000 t/y of coke required for the sixth line and free-up berth capacity by speeding up vessel unloading.

Significantly more funds have been earmarked for the combined-cycle plant. Representing 45 per cent of Condor's total capital investment, the power station enhancements include the installation of two additional gas turbines, operating in combined-cycle with two new steam turbines. Two existing frame nine gas turbines - built as part of the Falcon expansion - will also be converted to combined cycle and four new waste heat recovery boilers will be installed.

Max power

As Baker explains, Dubal will secure two main economic benefits from the power enhancements. 'The first comes from combining the gas turbine generation and the steam cycle generation to give significant improvements in cycle efficiency. The second is derived by using the excess power, installed under Condor, to reduce generation in our existing, lower efficiency gas turbines,' he says. 'The combined-cycle configuration therefore gives us flexibility in operations and allows us to optimise our system.'

For Condor's construction, Dubal is once again acting as the project manager and is being assisted by the three UK consultants, that were involved in potline five. Each firm has a specific role. K Home Engineering is in charge of the new potline, Mott Ewbank Preece is responsible for the power component, and DG Jones & Partners is providing quantity surveying and some project management services to the client.

In practice, Dubal has split the project into two. Below Condor general manager, David Baker are two managers, one of whom looks after potline six and works closely with K Home; the other, a UAE national, is taking care of the power element and deals with Mott Ewbank Preece. Additional input is also coming from Dubal's existing operations and maintenance staff, who is working alongside the Condor team.

Small packages

As on Falcon, the latest project has been divided into numerous construction and supply packages. The packaged approach gives Dubal some key benefits in its quest to implement the project as efficiently as possible. The client maintains strong control over the project, it achieves cost and time savings, and retains the valuable experience accrued from undertaking such a major development. 'Obviously, we could go for just one contractor to do the whole lot. The problem is that it would cost more and that the contractor would walk away with the experience,' Baker contends. 'We are an intelligent client and we know what we want to build. We find that we can save substantially both in time and money by breaking the project up.'

The drive to keep down costs is being further assisted by the fact that Dubal is supplying its own technology for both the reduction cell process and the potroom's process control unit. Purchased outside, the two technologies would cost the company an estimated $35 million.

An additional advantage of the implementation strategy is that it allows local companies to secure a high share of the contract work. On Condor, Dubal forecasts that about 35 per cent of the total capital investment will end up in the local market, a significant percentage in view of the substantial equipment costs associated with the power station expansion. In certain areas, such as electrical and civil works, Dubai-based companies will dominate contract awards. Among the leading contenders for the civil packages are Al-Naboodah Laing and Al-Futtaim Tarmac. Both companies have worked extensively with Dubal in the past and are now well acquainted with the civil engineering requirements of building smelters.

Condor is being implemented on a fast-track basis. Energising of the first cells on the new potline is scheduled to take place by July 1999, with the entire project set for completion by April 2000. The tight deadline demands exact programming for the individual contracts. On the power station expansion, for example, the two new gas turbines are being installed ahead of the combined-cycle units, in a move that will allow the new line to commence operations early. To protect the programme and achieve additional cost savings, the company has also purchased the majority of the steel required on the overall project directly from the mills.

With land-fill work now at an advanced stage, construction work is gathering pace on Condor. Over the past month, Dubal has awarded several substantial contracts on the development, including the gas turbine package, the rectifiers and transformer station order, and the civil works for the new carbon plant. More will follow soon as the client seeks to meet its target of having all the major packages awarded by the end of April, and the remaining items placed by June. According to the schedule, construction activity will reach a peak in late 1998, before tailing off in the second half of 1999.

Soaring ambitions

The Condor project goes beyond making Dubal the largest aluminium producer in the Gulf and among the world's lowest cost producers. It also represents a central plank in the company's strategy to develop its own in-house technical and project management capabilities. The experience gleaned from implementing Condor will prove invaluable, if and when the aluminium producer next hits the expansion trail. That could be either at Jebel Ali or further afield: the company has announced that it is seeking a partner for the Hawk project, a potential 530,000 t/y greenfield smelter to be built in the Gulf. 'Everyone is gaining a tremendous amount of experience from Condor,' Baker says. 'That is strengthening our base of expertise, so that if Hawk comes along, we will already have the people to take the leading positions.'