Novelis completes furnace upgrades with Fives, aiming to cut carbon footprint

Novelis has taken another step towards trimming the environmental impact of its German operations, finishing a joint upgrade of three aluminium melting furnaces at its Voerde site with engineering specialist Fives. The two companies have worked together for years, but this latest round of improvements is being viewed as a particularly meaningful push towards lower-carbon production.

Rather than replacing the furnaces entirely, Novelis opted to fit each of them with Fives’ North American TwinBed® II burners. These burners are known across the industry for combining strong energy performance with reduced emissions and a notably sturdy design. The whole upgrade, from the early drawings to the last checks, was handled by Fives’ North American Combustion team in Bilbao.

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The final furnace came to operations only recently, and the immediate impact has been noticeable. Gas use has dropped sharply, and Novelis reports that the carbon footprint linked to these furnaces is now more than 40 per cent lower than the levels recorded at the Voerde casthouse in mid-2023, before the modernisation began.

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Emilio Braghi, who serves as Executive VP and President of Novelis Europe, said the work ties directly into the company’s broader “Novelis 3×30” goals, which are aimed at boosting circularity and cutting emissions by the end of the decade. “Sustainability is at the core of Novelis’ business model,” he said, describing the furnace enhancements as a tangible way to reduce both environmental impact and day-to-day energy demand.

For Fives, the project adds another chapter to a relationship that has stretched close to twenty years. According to Pablo Arribalzaga, managing director for Europe at Fives North American Combustion, this upgrade is going to be a new milestone for Novelis’ long-term plans of cutting its carbon footprint.

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