Novelis to invest $365 million in building a new advanced closed-loop recycling centre for aluminium auto sheet

Novelis Inc., an American industrial aluminium company, has reportedly announced its plan to invest $365 million to build a highly advanced recycling centre for automotive in North America. The project, to be built adjacent to Novelis’ existing automotive finished plant in Guthrie, Kentucky, will have an annual casting capacity of 240,000 tonnes of sheet ingot, reducing the company’s carbon emissions by more than 1 million tonnes each year.

The centre will enable Novelis to grow its closed-loop-recycling programme with more automotive customers in North America. Through closed-loop recycling, remaining aluminium is collected after automotive parts being stamped from sheets and used to remake the same product for new vehicle production. The centre will also have the capability to process aluminium from vehicles at the end of their lifecycle.

Using recycled aluminium as raw material requires only 5 per cent of the energy for primary aluminium production, thus avoiding 95 per cent of the carbon emissions associated with the process.

The new recycling centre will have advanced industry-leading processes and capabilities, including shredding and sorting technology, as well as energy-efficient innovations to support the company’s sustainability goal. Groundbreaking of the project is scheduled in early 2022, and commissioning is expected in 2024. When fully operational, the project will create nearly 140 new jobs in Guthrie.

"Novelis aims to be the world's leading provider of low-carbon, sustainable aluminum solutions that advance our business, industry and society toward the benefits of a circular economy," said Steve Fisher, President and CEO of Novelis, Inc. "Through this investment, we will continue to increase the amount of recycled content in our products, reducing our CO2 emissions and moving us closer to carbon neutrality."  

Tom Boney, Executive Vice President and President of Novelis North America, said: "We are excited about this new investment in Kentucky, which will help Novelis achieve its sustainability goals, as well as support the carbon-reduction targets of our automotive customers."

He added, "The Commonwealth of Kentucky has been a great business partner for many years and has a strong, highly skilled workforce to meet the growing need for high-strength, low-carbon aluminum. We look forward to deepening our relationships with community leaders to ensure our facility has a lasting, beneficial impact in the region."