After serving 11 years as executive vice president and head of Hydro’s Primary Metal business area, Hilde Merete Aasheim assumed her new position in the company as President and CEO on May 8, 2019, with the intention of accelerating the operational excellence by ensuring stricter financial discipline and improved earnings from rolled products.

Today, we, the team of AlCircle, are immensely proud to have got a chance to conduct a brief interview with Ms. Aasheim who also happened to be on the board of International Aluminium Institute and Qatar Aluminium Ltd. Starting from her short-term goals to long-term strategies, Aasheim has shared with us her key area of focus to take one of the world’s largest aluminium companies to the next level where it could achieve the benchmark of a sustainable footprint through the value chain and life-cycle of aluminium. To get more insight into our conversation, read the interview.

Q: You have assumed responsibility as Hydro’s new President and CEO at a very crucial stage. What are your short-term goals for the company to survive this crisis?

A: My main focus is to lift profitability and drive sustainability. I am optimistic about the long-term prospects for aluminium and Hydro as the world moves towards the low-carbon, circular economy. But we must acknowledge the challenges that must be addressed to strengthen our performance and cash generation. We will therefore increase our ambitions on operational excellence and ensure stricter financial discipline going forward, and we will explore all options to improve earnings from Rolled Products for the future.