Abu Dhabi, Dubai explore multibillion-dollar IPO of aluminum firm EGA

Emirates Global Aluminium PJSC is assessing the feasibility of an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter, potentially reviving plans for a deal that could rank among the largest-ever share sales in the Middle East.

The region’s biggest aluminum producer has sent requests for proposals to banks as it explores a potential listing that could raise several billion dollars, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Rothschild & Co. is advising the firm, two of the people said.

EGA, based in the United Arab Emirates and jointly owned by Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. and the Investment Corporation of Dubai, has been weighing an IPO for nearly a decade. It operates aluminum plants in both cities.

In a 2023 interview with Bloomberg News, Mubadala Chief Executive Officer Khaldoon Al Mubarak said EGA could sell shares to the public “maybe this year.” That came two years after Bloomberg reported that the firm was poised to appoint banks including Citigroup Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. on a deal that could have valued the company at over $15 billion. An earlier attempt, in 2018, was also shelved.

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The choice of the listing venue will be a key question for the deal, people familiar with the matter said. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have both been pushing state-backed firms to list on their local bourses as part of an effort to deepen capital markets and monetize strategic assets. That initiative has helped transform the UAE into one of the world’s most active IPO markets in recent years.

Discussions are ongoing and there’s no certainty that EGA’s shareholders will proceed with the offering, the people said. 

EGA said no decision has been made on a potential IPO, which remains at the discretion of its shareholders. In a statement, the company said it is “exploring potential requirements to ensure readiness, should the shareholders choose to proceed with an IPO in the future.”

Representatives for Mubadala and Rothschild declined to comment. The Dubai Media Office did not respond to a request for comment on ICD’s plans. 

Any share sale for EGA will come at a time when it’s facing headwinds including higher tariffs on aluminum imports to the US. The firm completed its first acquisition in America last year, gaining access to some supply that avoids tariffs in one of the its largest markets.

EGA is also planning to begin construction of a $4 billion plant in Oklahoma next year. That announcement coincided with President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf, where he sought trillions of dollars in investment from the region.

More recently, the firm suffered a setback in Africa, after Guinea transferred a bauxite mining lease from its local unit to a new state-owned entity last week.