Egypt Aluminium's plan to boost production by 50 percent to 300,000 tonnes a year is ahead of schedule by two years, an official at the plant's state holding company Metallurgical Industries said on Monday.
Egypt Aluminium, the country's only primary aluminium producer, had planned to fully modernise its nine pot-lines by 2007, but that target has changed.
"We are looking to finish upgrading all pot-lines to raise capacity to 300,000 tonnes in 2005," privatisation and investment advisor Wadie Mishreky told Reuters.
The pot-lines are being upgraded with pre-bake equipment from older and less energy efficient Soderberg technology at a cost of "millions of dollars".
Work has continued on improving the plant's fifth pot-line after number six was completed last year, he said.
Majority-owned by the state, Egypt Aluminium pulled out of its privatisation project late last year after being put up for sale, although a buyer would ultimately be sought, Mishreky said.
"We are waiting to finalise the industrial project and have temporarily withdrawn the company from its privatisation project," he said, adding that no date to re-introduce a sell-off had been decided.
No bids or statement of interest had been received for the plant, he said.
Metallurgical Industries has a 92 percent stake in Egypt Aluminium after the rest of the shares were sold to the public in 1998, raising almost $65 million.