Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden) said its board had agreed on a $4.5 billion financing plan for the first phase of a joint aluminum plant with US firm Alcoa. The financing will be provided by a group of local and foreign banks, as well as Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and the Industrial Investment Fund, the Saudi firm said. It gave no details of the terms of the deal. “This will cover 60 percent of the cost for the first phase of the project, while the rest of the financing will be made by the partners (Maaden and Alcoa),” said a Maaden statement posted on the Saudi bourse website. The joint venture started work on the $10 billion complex, which it said will be the world's largest fully integrated aluminum complex, earlier this month. The complex will include a bauxite mine and an alumina refinery, aluminum smelter and rolling mill at Ras Al-Zour. The smelter and the rolling mill are expected to begin operations in 2013, while the mine and refinery are expected to come on stream the following year.
