Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), which has launched the Line 6 expansion of its smelter, has appointed General Electric (GE) to initiate a technical and commercial feasibility study to implement a fourth combined-cycle gas turbine (GT) block using GE 9HA technology at its Power Station (PS) 5.

Alba said the addition of the fourth block of GE 9HA GT at PS 5 will further increase the power efficiency and output of PS 5. GE along with Gama Consortium is the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for its PS 5.

The MoU was signed by Alba’s CEO Tim Murray and GE’s chief financial officer Todd Smith in the presence of HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister at a reception organised by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) in collaboration with American Chamber of Commerce and the US-Bahrain Business Council in Washington DC recently.

Murray said: “We are proud that Alba is transforming power generation in the aluminium smelting industry by becoming the first smelter in the world to install the GE 9HA technology at PS 5. This cutting-edge technology will further align us with the goals of the kingdom’s Economic Vision 2030.

“Alba’s partnership with GE through this MoU will strengthen our position as an environmentally responsible smelter."