STEELGURU
Aughinish Alumina owner in talks over boosting Shannon site
Edited by : AL CIRCLE
2 min read
The Russian owner of Aughinish Alumina is in talks with the Government about boosting production at the Shannon Estuary plant which is the Republic’s biggest manufacturing site.
Rusal, the Russian group controlled by oligarch Mr Oleg Deripaska which owns the facility wants to grow production at the Irish plant to 3 million tonnes of alumina a year, 60% increase on the 1.8 million tonnes it manufactured in 2010.
Mr Yakov Itsov head of the company’s international division of which the Irish operation is a part said that it has been in talks with the Government about these plans. Rusal already intends to boost last year’s production at Aughinish to 1.99 million tonnes to meet growing demand for aluminum which the alumina from the plant is used to manufacture.
The group is the world’s biggest producer of aluminum. Its Irish facility is the largest of its kind in Europe and has the capacity to produce up to two million tonnes of alumina a year. Rusal was forced to shut a number of alumina plants in early 2009 as demand for the finished product slumped and prices fell below USD 1,300 per tonne.
However aluminum prices are now expected to reach USD 2,500 this year and demand is expected to remain strong as China is likely to begin importing the metal.
Mr Oleg Mukhamedshin deputy CEO of Rusal said that China’s domestic aluminum production has historically been able to meet demand in the country but energy shortages have forced manufacturers there to cut capacity. Outside China demand from emerging economies such as Brazil and India is also strong.
Rusal has been working on refinancing USD 4.75 billion of debt to give it the resources to expand. It has a number of large capital spending projects under way including the construction of a new aluminum smelter in Russia.
In Ireland, the company recently completed the construction of a new waste storage facility at Aughinish that will allow it to maintain production there at two million tonnes a year until 2030.
Last year, Limerick Alumina Refining the group’s main Irish subsidiary, made USD 24.5 million pre tax profits on close to USD 500 million in sales. Turnover almost doubled in 2010 from USD 252 million in 2009 the year that demand on world markets slumped. The company lost USD 28 million in 2009.
Rusal, the Russian group controlled by oligarch Mr Oleg Deripaska which owns the facility wants to grow production at the Irish plant to 3 million tonnes of alumina a year, 60% increase on the 1.8 million tonnes it manufactured in 2010.
Mr Yakov Itsov head of the company’s international division of which the Irish operation is a part said that it has been in talks with the Government about these plans. Rusal already intends to boost last year’s production at Aughinish to 1.99 million tonnes to meet growing demand for aluminum which the alumina from the plant is used to manufacture.
The group is the world’s biggest producer of aluminum. Its Irish facility is the largest of its kind in Europe and has the capacity to produce up to two million tonnes of alumina a year. Rusal was forced to shut a number of alumina plants in early 2009 as demand for the finished product slumped and prices fell below USD 1,300 per tonne.
However aluminum prices are now expected to reach USD 2,500 this year and demand is expected to remain strong as China is likely to begin importing the metal.
Mr Oleg Mukhamedshin deputy CEO of Rusal said that China’s domestic aluminum production has historically been able to meet demand in the country but energy shortages have forced manufacturers there to cut capacity. Outside China demand from emerging economies such as Brazil and India is also strong.
Rusal has been working on refinancing USD 4.75 billion of debt to give it the resources to expand. It has a number of large capital spending projects under way including the construction of a new aluminum smelter in Russia.
In Ireland, the company recently completed the construction of a new waste storage facility at Aughinish that will allow it to maintain production there at two million tonnes a year until 2030.
Last year, Limerick Alumina Refining the group’s main Irish subsidiary, made USD 24.5 million pre tax profits on close to USD 500 million in sales. Turnover almost doubled in 2010 from USD 252 million in 2009 the year that demand on world markets slumped. The company lost USD 28 million in 2009.
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