UC RUSAL invests RUR 160 mln to modernise the VgAZ powder production facilities

UC RUSAL, a leading global aluminium producer, announces that its RUR 160 mln (USD 3 mln), investment programme, which began early in 2015, to modernise powder production at the Volgograd Aluminium Smelter (VgAZ) is progressing as planned.

As part of the modernisation, VgAZ is working to expand the range of aluminium powders and pastes used in the production of aerated concrete for the construction industry. A project to develop a grinding unit fitted with a classification system for the production of a wide range of aluminium powders is currently underway. In addition, the commissioning of a mixer unit for the production of hydrophilic pastes with a capacity of 50 tonnes per month is ongoing.

VgAZ is undergoing a comprehensive upgrade to its grinding equipment, as well as the installation of a remote equipment status reporting system to improve productivity, product quality and production safety.

Since the modernisation programme commenced, output of powder products for the first 5 months of 2015 at VgAZ already exceeds output for the same period of 2014 by 670 tonnes. By the end of 2015, RUSAL plans to produce close to 8,500 tonnes of powder products at VgAZ.

‘The new types of powders that VgAZ will produce as a result of the modernisation, are high quality products required by our customers. Thanks to the modernisation of our production facilities, we will, on the one hand, be able to produce more high-margin and, on the other hand, deliver more quality powders and pastes at a competitive prices to Russian consumers,’ Aleksey Arnautov, head of RUSAL’s New Projects Directorate, commented.

The modernisation of VgAZ is part of a larger programme to increase production of aluminium powder products from 20,000 to 25,500 tonnes annually and to increase RUSAL’s share in the Russian and CIS markets from 54 % to 76 %. Total investment for this project will amount to USD 52 mln. The programme will be implemented at VgAZ and the powder metallurgy production facilities in Shelekhov, and is scheduled to complete in 2022.