Russian aluminum producer Rusal plans to split its operations into two companies, the first for green aluminum production and the second for domestic growth.
According to a media release today, Rusal itself has been proposed to be renamed ‘AL+’ and will focus on the company’s low-carbon aluminum brand, Allow. Last month, the company declared that it had finished development on its zero-carbon aluminum production method, which uses inert anode cells instead of carbon pot-lining. It also shipped out the first batch of test production.
AL+ will continue to capture market share in the growing sector of sustainable, clean production metal, which is touted to have its own premium. The company will hold the Krasnoyarsk, Sayanogorsk, Taishet, Khakas, Boguchansky, and Kubal smelters. According to estimates, this would translate to 2.6mn mt of green (zero-carbon) aluminum per year.
The demerged company, which is yet to be named, will hold the Bratsk, Irkutsk, Novokuznetsk, Volgograd, and Kandalaksha smelters, which are considered to produce around 1.8mn mt of low-carbon aluminum per year. This company will focus on domestic sales growth as well as modernization of equipment such as pot-lines, electrolysis machines, and other smelter equipment.