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US Bechtel has been awarded a contract to conduct a 12-month feasibility study for what would be one of the biggest aluminium plants in the Middle East.
The $3.2 billion aluminium project will be built by Saudi mining firm Maaden which also has plans for a SR4.5 billion ($1.2 billion) phosphate mining operation.
Bechtel will evaluate plans to produce 3.4 million tonnes of bauxite at the Zubeira mine in north Saudi Arabia, a 1.4 million tonne-capacity alumina refinery and 620,000 tonne-capacity aluminium smelter.
