Alcoa to curtail additional capacity at Aluminerie de Bécancour smelter in Canada

Pittsburgh-based Alcoa Corp. has announced it will immediately begin to curtail half of the one operating potline at the Aluminerie de Bécancour Inc. (ABI) smelter in Québec, Canada.

The Bécancour aluminum smelter, owned by Alcoa and Rio Tinto Alcan Inc., has nameplate capacity of 455,255 tons per year across its three potlines. Two of the facility’s potlines were curtailed Jan. 11, 2018, after union members rejected a proposed labor agreement for hourly employees.

Since the lockout, the company’s salaried employees have operated the one potline. The additional curtailment, however, is necessary to ensure continued safety and maintenance in light of recent retirements and departures. The salaried employees who remain will continue to ensure that the smelter can be ready for a potential restart.

This partial curtailment is expected to be complete by Dec. 21.