To expand sustainable aluminum sheet production capacity for automotive
The following article and pictures have been contributed by the Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Seoul for publication by The Korea Post media, publisher of 3 English and 2 Korean-language news publications since 1985.—Ed.
Novelis, the world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, signed an official agreement with Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province, to invest approximately $375 million USD to expand its rolling and recycling capabilities at its Zhenjiang plant on October 28. The expansion is expected to establish the first automotive closed-loop recycling system in China and help enable the automotive and transportation industries’ transition to a more sustainable future.
Mr. Jingyuan Jia, Director of Jingkou District, Ms. Linhong Fang, President of Zhenjiang Jingkou Industrial Zone and James Liu, Managing Director of Novelis China and Vice President of Automotive for Novelis Asia, signed the agreement as representatives for both organizations. Mr. Shenfeng Xu, CPC Party Secretary of Jingkou District, Mr. Jia Min, Deputy Director of Jingkou District and Mr. Xiaoxi Wei, CPC Party Secretary of Jingkou Industry Zone, attended and witnessed the signing ceremony.
Novelis is the world’s largest supplier of automotive aluminum sheet with more than 40 years of automotive experience. The company increased its capacity to serve the automotive market by 250% in the past three years globally and six-fold in both China and North America. To accelerate the development of new and innovative automotive aluminum applications and meet growing demands of the automotive industry, Novelis signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the project earlier this year. This official signing is a strong commitment of an invested $375 million USD to transform Novelis’ Zhenjiang plant to support future growth opportunities for sustainable, lightweight aluminum in the Asian automotive market. The investment is expected to include expanding the plant’s existing hot mill, adding a cold mill, and establishing the first automotive closed-loop-recycling system in the country. The project is expected to break ground in early 2022 and, upon completion in mid-2024, will create a fully integrated supply chain in China for Novelis’ automotive customers, from coil production to heat treatment to recycling. The Zhenjiang plant will continue to also produce materials for the aerospace and commercial plate markets.
Mr. Shenfeng Xu, CPC Party Secretary of Jingkou District said: “With the investment from Novelis, the high-performance aluminum material industry in the Zhenjiang Jingkou Industrial Zone now exceeds the 10-billion-yuan mark. An important project for Jiangsu Province, the Novelis Zhenjiang plant expansion shall become the key engine in driving Zhenjiang’s modern industrial industry and be pivotal in bolstering our economic development advantages. As companies and organizations all come together to achieve carbon neutrality goals in China, I believe the establishment of the first closed-loop automotive recycling system in China will become a strong driving force among others.”
ames Liu, Managing Director of Novelis China and Vice President of Automotive for Novelis Asia, said: "We continue to see growing demand for lightweight, sustainable aluminum solutions from automotive customers in China. As low-carbon transportation and equipment become indispensable, we cannot be more excited to leverage our recycling capabilities to partner with traditional automobile manufacturers and new car makers to co-drive a transformation of this industry. Novelis is well positioned to efficiently deliver innovative, lightweight aluminum solutions to meet increased customer demand locally and globally."
Novelis’ ambition is to be the world’s leading provider of low-carbon, sustainable aluminum solutions that advance our business, industry and society toward the benefits of a circular economy. To realize that, Novelis has been working with customers in the creation of pioneering applications and processes to realize aluminum’s full potential as an infinitely recyclable material with a significantly lower carbon footprint compared to primary aluminum. In this instance, the first automotive closed-loop recycling system in the country aims to answer material waste problems in traditional supply chains by reclaiming and recycling production scrap, enabling significant CO2 savings and minimizing the use of primary aluminum inputs. Doing so reduces the CO2 footprint of the aluminum sheet delivered to our customers and ensures that their production scrap remains in the value-chain and is transformed back into the same high-quality products infinitely.
Sachin Satpute, President of Novelis Asia, said: "China is one of the fastest-growing new energy vehicle markets in the world, and is a key component of the overall growth potential of the Asian automotive market. As such, Novelis is continuing to invest in its operations in China to retain our market leadership, as well as expand our local hiring pool. Novelis’ purpose is shaping a sustainable world together, and we share a common vision with China’s ’dual carbon’ goals, as we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint by 30% by 2026 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. We hope to lead the sustainable development of the automotive aluminum industry in China and play an integral role in supporting China’s national goals toward a more sustainable and greener transformation of its economic and social development."
About Novelis:
Novelis Inc. is driven by its purpose of shaping a sustainable world together. We are a global leader in the production of innovative aluminum products and solutions and the world’s largest recycler of aluminum. Our ambition is to be the leading provider of low-carbon, sustainable aluminum solutions and to achieve a fully circular economy by partnering with our suppliers, as well as our customers in the aerospace, automotive, beverage can and specialties industries throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South America. Novelis had net sales of $12.3 billion in fiscal year 2021. Novelis is a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries Limited, an industry leader in aluminum and copper, and the metals flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai. For more information, visit novelis.com.
Forward-Looking Statements:
Statements made in this news release which describe Novelis’ intentions, expectations or predictions may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of securities laws. Examples of forward-looking statements in this news release include plans to invest approximately $375 million USD at our Zhenjiang plant to expand the plant’s existing hot mill, add a cold mill, and establish the first automotive closed-loop-recycling system in the country. Novelis cautions that, by their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty. We do not intend, and we disclaim any obligation, to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important risk factors which could impact outcomes are included under the caption “Risk Factors” in the company’s Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021.