Operation, production, or automation: why the job cuts in the aluminium industry?

Throughout 2025, the aluminium industry news recorded several instances of job cuts due to factors like output optimisation, tariff onus leading to production cuts and technological advancements. Companies like Alcoa, Rio Tinto, Emirates Global Aluminium, Norsk Hydro, Glencore etc. have reduced employees, indicating the ripple effect of cost and production optimisation across the majority of the aluminium value chain. 

Explore- Most accurate data to drive business decisions with Global ALuminium Industry Outlook 2026 across the value chain

Alcoa’s cost-reduction drive in 2026

The most recent update in this domain is in February 2026, with a cost-cutting drive to set course across the alumina refining operations of the Pittsburgh-based Alcoa Corporation, a global industry leader in bauxite, alumina, and aluminium products, after alumina prices fell 12 per cent in 2024, driving a one-third drop in alumina division earnings. The 2025 financial results showed a weak performance, partly due to better smelter performance.

Bill Oplinger, CEO, has signalled the company’s “pretty aggressive” approach around costs across its refining network in order to safeguard it from being put into “jeopardy for the future.” The US aluminium specialist could take strong action to boost profits from alumina, most of which it refines in Western Australia.

The move indicates a broader effort to protect profitability amid fluctuating alumina prices, rising input costs, and tightening margins across global refining assets. At the same time, there is a focus on portfolio optimisation, including potential adjustments to refinery output and operating intensity, retaining competitiveness in a cost-sensitive environment.

Alcoa noted that its refineries are at the lowest 25 per cent of global cost curves, though low-grade WA bauxite is increasing ore, caustic, and gas consumption per tonne of alumina. The company is awaiting a mid-2025 EPA recommendation and aims for environmental approval by December to sustain WA operations that generate over 70 per cent of its bauxite and alumina.

Owing to high capital costs, Alcoa has no greenfield expansion plans, but is considering brownfield expansions at existing assets.

Western Australia, the hub for Pinjarra, Wagerup, and the now-closed Kwinana refinery, accounts for over 70 per cent of Alcoa’s alumina output and fosters around 4,000 jobs across Huntly and Willowdale bauxite mines. The clear indication is towards the eventual lay-offs that have already resulted from the refinery closure and may repeat with the drastic cost-cutting measures about to be practised.  

Also read: Section 232 tariff stays, reciprocal duties to be reduced in India-US deal: Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal

But, is this a stand-alone instance? That is not where the story began. In the beginning of 2025, Alcoa had predicted the ripple effect of the 25 per cent tariff imposition on aluminium and steel imports by the Trump administration – companies trying to recalibrate capital discipline and operating efficiency in response to market uncertainty which would inevitably result in mass lay-offs that can even cross the number of 100,000, with further 80,000 jobs across the value-chain sectors that support it. Proving the prediction right, the entire value chain absorbed this effect throughout 2025.

The bauxite sector lays off employees

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) subsidiary, the Guinea Alumina Corporation’s (GAC) mining agreement with the Government of the Republic of Guinea was terminated after the suspension of the company’s bauxite exports and mining operations. This prompted significant job cuts, initially affecting more than 2,000 employees and contractors.

Metals giant Rio Tinto IOC cited targeted structural changes in a bid to be economically viable, with an unspecified number of jobs at its operations in Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec. Spokesperson Vanessa Damha noted the “structural changes as part of our transformation to ensure the long-term profitability, resilience, and success of our business.” She added, “These measures are intended to enable greater efficiency, stronger performance and long-term sustainability.”

Glencore planned to cut about 1,000 jobs in an attempt to get its costs back in check and reset the business. The decision was prompted by the increasing expenses of the ageing mines that were becoming more difficult and costly to operate smoothly.

The alumina industry reports unemployment

After a year of cease in operation and gradual phase-wise curtailments, Alcoa confirmed the permanent closure of its Kwinana alumina refinery in Western Australia. Matt Reed, Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for Alcoa, elaborated on multiple attempts at a sustainable path to restarting the refinery operations, proving, ultimately, to be too expensive. Downsizing from 800 to 250 employees in the initial phases, this scaled down the employee strength to 50.

The primary aluminium industry’s smelter shutdown

South32 announced the shutdown of Mozambique’s Mozal aluminium smelter in 2026 due to the government’s failure to acquire a new and stable power deal beyond the official contract till March 26. As a result, it would be denting the global aluminium supply by pulling back its 560,000-tonne annual capacity as well as costing the employment of around 5,000 workers. 

Also read: Mozal’s power lifeline hangs by a thread as shutdown clock ticks, but the minister remains optimistic

The downstream business faces tariff impacts

As a direct consequence of the US tariffs targeting the steel and aluminium industries, the Canada Metal Processing Group has reported a lay-off of around 140 employees. The United Steelworkers union, with a strength of over 225,000 members in Canada, stated the possibility of laid-off figures increasing and additional impacts to follow.

The recycled aluminium sector experiences similar issues  

Ohio-based aluminium billet and slab manufacturer Matalco Inc. decided to shut down its Canton facility located in Ohio in June 2025. The announcement came with an expected lay-off of the company’s 71 employees, the process scheduled to continue for up to 90 days. The reason stated for the layoff was to optimise its portfolio of aluminium remelting and casting facilities.

Unemployment in the sustainability sector

Driven by the United States’ steep 50 per cent import tariff, Hydro’s decision to cut around 750 white-collar jobs stemmed from a company-wide cost control and organisational restructuring effort. Hydro expects around 600 positions to be eliminated by the end of 2025, with another 150 roles phased out later. CEO Eivind Kallevik stated the importance of the action was motivated by the importance of gauging the contemporary “geopolitical unpredictability” resulting in “volatility” in the market.

Although rising operational costs and production cuts due to the US tariffs may not be the sole drivers of the frequent downsizing news in the aluminium industry.

Introduction of automation in upstream industries

EGA implemented Azure Arc hybrid infrastructure, a cloud computing platform to optimise IT workloads and power usage, reportedly cutting power costs by over 80 per cent. The company deployed cutting-edge digital smelting systems to improve energy efficiency, emissions control, and process stability, reducing operational waste and environmental impact. EGA further improved automation, process monitoring, and digital manufacturing controls, reinforcing productivity and operational precision.

Rio Tinto collaborated with Indigital on a biodiversity tech programme to integrate digital mapping, Indigenous knowledge systems, and environmental monitoring technology to enhance biodiversity protection and land stewardship, combining cultural insight with modern data tools.

Alba (Aluminium Bahrain), partnering with CSS, adopted an AI-powered analytics platform to monitor potline performance, improve operational efficiency, and reduce process variability. With Array Innovation, the company expanded its use of machine learning and predictive analytics to improve safety, equipment performance, and energy efficiency in smelting operations.

Sortera rolled out an AI-powered sorting system that improves scrap identification and separation, boosting recycling efficiency while reducing manual sorting requirements.

Similarly, EPIQ Machinery introduced automated and robotics-enabled material handling systems, reducing reliance on manual transport and repetitive labour in aluminium production environments.

As aluminium industry giants accelerate the adoption of AI, automation, robotics, and smart controls, operational models are steadily progressing toward higher capital intensity and lower manual intervention. These technologies improve cost efficiency, safety, yield consistency, and sustainability performance, creating competitive pressure for peer companies to adopt similar systems to remain viable. 

In effect, are technological efficiency gains, being commercially and environmentally beneficial, going to reshape labour demand across the aluminium value chain, potentially contributing to industry-wide downsizing and workforce restructuring?

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