Rusal expects all its aluminum to adhere to 'low carbon footprint' criteria by 2023
MOSCOW. Nov 2 (Interfax) - Rusal is planning to make all its aluminum "low carbon footprint" by 2023, in compliance with the new Allow brand, the aluminum giant told Interfax.
Rusal announced the launch of a new brand of low carbon aluminum on Thursday, offering customers a significantly lower carbon footprint relative to industry average greenhouse gas emissions from production of the metal.
At the moment 80% of aluminum complies with these criteria, the company said, however, a total of 100,000 tonnes has been immediately contracted for this brand.
Rusal is not ruling out selling the product with a premium and is hoping to attract new clients with the brand who place great importance on the environment impact of all links in the supply chain, a company representative said.
Rusal's sales and marketing division are already holding talks with clients on signing contracts to supply the new brand of aluminum. These agreements include a company commitment for the carbon footprint of the aluminum. The metal is provided with a certificate from an independent assessor form the British Standards Institute, certifying the criteria announced by Rusal.
The carbon footprint of Allow brand products will be less than 4 tonnes in CO2 equivalent per tonne of aluminum produced. The global average is around 12 tonnes, taking both direct and indirect energy emissions of greenhouse gases into account. Rusal is able to provide low greenhouse gas emissions due to its access to hydroelectricity.
Rusal produced 2.763 million tonnes of aluminum in 9M 2017, up 0.3% year-on-year. The share of products with added value in sales was 50% in Q3.