Middle East aluminium attacks have limit impact on China prebaked anode exports

Attacks on major aluminium smelters in the Middle East are expected to disrupt regional production, but the impact on China's petroleum coke demand will likely be small. China's prebaked anode exports to the Middle East reached 68,000 tonnes in January-February 2026, with the UAE and Bahrain contributing 71.6% of the total.

On March 28, Emirates Global Aluminium's (EGA) Al Taweelah plant in Abu Dhabi and Alba's production facilities in Bahrain were hit by precision drone strikes, damaging some equipment. EGA and Alba have annual capacities of 1.6 million tonnes and 1.623 million tonnes, respectively. The Middle East accounted for about