Speira advances Rheinwerk aluminium recycling hub with $46m furnace investment

Speira is progressing with the redevelopment of its Rheinwerk facility in Neuss, Germany, as it continues transforming the site into an aluminium recycling hub.

The aluminium rolling and recycling company has invested around EUR 40 million (USD 46 million) in a fourth recycling furnace, which is due to come on stream this autumn. It has also invested in the decommissioning and redevelopment of the site's former aluminium smelter.

With the complete phase-out of electrolysis, Speira said it has set the course for a fundamental transformation of the Rheinwerk site. Instead of energy-intensive primary production, the company is now focusing on aluminium recycling and strengthening the circular economy.

The new fourth recycling furnace is a key part of this transition. Aluminium scrap will be melted there and, following further processing, used in products such as beverage cans. Once commissioned, the furnace will further increase Speira's recycling capacity.

Boris Kurth, who is responsible for Speira's can business and the Rheinwerk, said, "Three years ago, we announced plans to transform the Rheinwerk into a European recycling hub. Today, these plans have become a reality.

"With the new recycling furnace, we are expanding our capacity to meet the growing demand for recycled aluminium and keeping even more of this valuable material in the cycle."

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As part of the redevelopment, around one-third of the former smelting areas has already been converted into a modern scrap yard, where incoming scrap is sampled, sorted and prepared for melting. The company is placing particular emphasis on post-consumer scrap-aluminium that has completed its full life cycle and is being returned to the recycling loop. The new storage capacity will ensure a steady supply of material to all recycling furnaces at the site.

Speira is also moving ahead with the redevelopment of the remaining former production areas and will shortly begin dismantling additional sections. The company said the work is laying the foundations for the future-oriented redevelopment of the site, creating new opportunities where primary production once took place.

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