Dubai Aluminium Company (Dubal) has completed the final payment on a $250 million loan taken in 1995 for the company's Falcon expansion project.

The loan, arranged by Merrill Lynch, was one of the first highly structured loans in the Middle East. It was supported by the National Bank of Dubai and Emirates Bank International and was built using a complex aluminium price protection system, according to chief financial officer Sameer Al-Ansari.

Dubal recorded total sales (including alloy) of 410,000 tonnes in 1999. This is slated rise to 550,000 tonnes in 2000. Dubal said the success of this loan had also provided the impetus for local banks to fund Dubal's Condor expansion at "very competitive rates".