RUSAL starts rolling test shipments of the world's lowest carbon footprint aluminium

RUSAL has started rolling the test deliveries of an entirely new product, aluminium produced by a revolutionary technology on inert anode cells. The usage of an inert anode in the electrolysis process drives it achievable to almost eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.

RUSAL urges prospective partners and market leaders to test a pilot batch of this aluminium produced by the company using inert anode technology. Combined with renewable hydropower, inert anode technology provides an unprecedented low carbon footprint in metal production - less than 0.01 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per ton of metal (Scope 1, Scope 2 - direct and indirect emissions). This is tens of times lesser than the industry average for aluminium production.

Roman Andryushin, Sales and Marketing Director of RUSAL said: “We see great interest from our customers in inert anode technology. We have already submitted this new product to companies that use aluminium in their production and are focused on reducing their carbon footprint along the entire production value chain. The ultimate goal of these tests is to expand the use of aluminium produced using inert anode technology, to demonstrate the benefits of decarbonization and to stimulate manufacturers to implement carbon-free technologies”.

RUSAL is the world leader in the development of inert anode technology and presently, the Krasnoyarsk Aluminum Smelter (KrAZ) operates a pilot section of cells with inert anodes of a new generation, which allows reducing the carbon footprint to a record level - less than 0.01 tons in CO2 equivalent per ton of aluminium (Scope 1, Scope 2 - direct and indirect emissions). Such a low-carbon footprint has been achieved thanks to the use of inert anodes in the electrolysis process. This technology is unique and has no analogues around the world.

The primary outcome of the development and testing of an inert anode cell show the achievement of stable production of aluminium on an industrial scale. The capacity of the new cells is about 1 ton of aluminium per day per cell at a current of 140 thousand amperes.

The use of an inert anode in the electrolysis process is a revolutionary environmental solution in the metallurgy sector. It acts as a substitute for classic carbon anodes with inert, non-combustible materials - ceramics or alloys, which minimizes greenhouse gas emissions, while the other advantage of this technology is the release of oxygen during the aluminium production process. A single cell with an inert anode can produce as much oxygen as 70 hectares of forest.