Aluminium giant Alcan announced on Monday that it had appointed Canadian Brent Hegger as the new CEO of its $2,7-billion, or R 18,5-billion, Coega aluminium smelter, and that construction was expected to start in 2008, with first metal production occurring in 2010.
Alcan said that it was in “advanced” discussions with potential partners and engineering firms to conduct the project's detailed front end engineering design (FEED).
In February Alcan told Engineering News Online that it had shortlisted four such companies.
Project financing is expected to account for some 60% of the total investment required for the smelter.
“Negotiations for the FEED and with potential partners are progressing as expected,” Alcan said.
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Hegger would replace Hal Spencer, who would retire on July 1, Alcan said in a statement.
Hegger has worked on numerous major projects in Canada, Russia, South Africa, Mozambique, Malaysia, and Chile. He was born in Montreal, Canada.
He had previously served as project director for South Africa’s Pebble Bed Modular Reactor nuclear project.
The plant, which would be the anchor-project for Coega’s industrial development zone, signed power supply contracts with State-owned Eskom in November.
Meanwhile, rival Alcoa’s May 7, $33-billion, or nearly R230-billion hostile takeover bid for Alcan was not stopping the negotiations between Alcan and Coega Development Corporation (CDC) to build the Port Elizabeth smelter, the CDC said on May 8.
“The CDC and Alcan negotiation teams are still meeting for discussions on technical issues for the location and operation of the Coega aluminium smelter in the Coega Industrial Development Zone.”
However, negotiations for the smelter were halted once before, after Pechiney, which was to have made the investment, was bought by Alcan in 2003.
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