Page 30 - Altogether Magazine Issue 4 English

30 THE QATALUM IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMME: SURPASSING ALL EXPECTATIONS Since its launch in January 2013, the Qatalum Improvement Programme (QIP), a drive to improve efficiency at the aluminium smelter, has gone from strength to strength. As ambitious as it seemed at the time, the initial goal – to achieve 52USD/tonne cash cost reduction in 2013 against the baseline in 2012– was rapidly realised, and just as quickly surpassed. Such has been the success of the programme that Qatalum is now well underway to achieve a 150US/tonne cash cost reduction, a feat that would position it among the top-ten most cost- effective smelters in the world on the CRU curve. 80 73 70 69 60 52 52 50 47 48 44 40 48 47 47 49 40 44 38 30 34 20 25 20 10 12 0 Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Actual Target