Investment in technology– a major step in tackling climate change across aluminium industry

Around the world, the aluminium industry is investing in projects and new technologies and building critical partnerships that are playing a crucial role in meeting environmental targets for 2050.

These projects include contracts for renewable energy, particularly wind, solar and hydropower; the creation of virtual batteries within smelters; the smart use of fuel sources, such as hydrogen and recycled steam; the use of lighter vehicles for transporting goods; and ideas for taking the recycling agenda further.

The solutions support the?International Aluminium Institute (IAI)’s three pathways to emissions reduction for the aluminium industry:

• Electricity decarbonisation?– with more than 60% of the aluminium sectors CO2e emissions from the production of electricity consumed during smelting, decarbonised power generation and carbon capture and storage (CCUS) will significantly support emission-reduction goals.
• Direct emissions reduction?– electrification, fuel switching and CCUS offer a credible approach to reduce emissions from fuel combustion, while new technologies, such as inert anodes, can lower process emissions.
• Recycling and resource efficiency?– increased collection rates and other resource efficiency actions would reduce the need for primary aluminium by 20%.

You can read more about these technologies here.