*

Plans to build first primary aluminium plant in US for

nearly 50

years

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Posts 7% increase in core profit

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Negotiations continue with Guinea after concession revoked

(Recasts with comments from CEO and CFO, adds background on

United States and Oklahoma project)

By ​Federico Maccioni

DUBAI, Feb 25 (Reuters) - The outlook for the ‌aluminium

market is healthy, Emirates Global Aluminium said on Wednesday,

citing opportunities from China's output capacity ceiling and

demand created ⁠by the cost of copper that has led some

manufacturers to use aluminium instead.

"The ⁠demand for aluminium is increasing globally...and

shifting a bit from ‌copper," CEO Abdulnasser ‌Bin Kalban told

Reuters in an interview, saying he expected demand to outpace

supply and that there was a ​lack of new aluminium facilities

globally.

EGA, which is ‌jointly owned by the Abu Dhabi's Mubadala and

the Dubai sovereign wealth fund ICD, plans to build the first

primary aluminium plant in ​the U.S. in almost 50 years.

CFO ​Pal Kildemo ‌said the total capital for the smelter set

to be built in Oklahoma had increased to between $5-6 billion

from previous $4 billion as the company plans to ⁠use its

advanced EX technology that is being tested in its UAE

facilities.

CENTURY ⁠ALUMINIUM STAKE

Under an agreement announced last month, Century Aluminum ( CENX )

will have a 40% stake while EGA will have the remaining

60% share in the project, whose planned capacity was increased

to 750,000 metric tons of aluminium per year.

"The 60-40 split will be ⁠largely reflected ‌in the equity

contribution going forward," Kildemo said.

While EGA posted ‌on Wednesday a 7% rise in core profit last

year based on higher sales, ⁠it took a $765 million hit in Guinea

after the African country revoked a bauxite concession to its

local unit GAC, a decision the Emirati company has opposed.

Bin Kalban said discussions with Guinean authorities were

ongoing without giving further detail.

EGA, said that alternative bauxite supply options, including

from Australia and Ghana, signed after the licence was revoked,

have helped to cover more than ​70% of volume needs.

"We have a global supply strategy, so we have multiple

sources instead of one place which used to be Guinea," Bin

Kalban said. He said its ​UAE refinery had been reconfigured ‌to

accept any type of bauxite.