Alcoa today announced that it has reached a tentative agreement on a long-term power contract with Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) for its Intalco Works aluminum smelter in Ferndale, Washington.
The proposed contract, which runs through September 2022, will ensure power supply for the smelter and help sustain the economic impact the plant brings to the region. A 90-day extension to the current contract will be in place while a public comment process on the new contract is conducted, followed by a review by BPA.
“We are pleased to be one step closer to long-term power security for Intalco Works, an important manufacturing operation in the northwest United States,” said U.S. Primary Products President Bob Wilt. “We want to thank our employees, elected officials and BPA for helping us get to this point in the process.”
The contract is expected to be finalized by early December.
Intalco Works started operations in 1966 and is currently running 576 smelting pots. The operation restarted half a potline in March of 2011, increasing its workforce by 88 employees. Along with 625 family wage jobs created at Intalco, the operation supports approximately $118 million in personal income in Whatcom County, $5 million in local taxes, $240,000 in annual charitable contributions and thousands of hours volunteered each year by Alcoa employees.
Alcoa is the world’s leading producer of primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum and alumina. In addition to inventing the modern-day aluminum industry, Alcoa innovation has been behind major milestones in the aerospace, automotive, packaging, building and construction, commercial transportation, consumer electronics and industrial markets over the past 120 years. Among the solutions Alcoa markets are flat-rolled products, hard alloy extrusions, and forgings, as well as Alcoa® wheels, fastening systems, precision and investment castings, and building systems in addition to its expertise in other light metals such as titanium and nickel-based super alloys. Sustainability is an integral part of Alcoa’s operating practices and the product design and engineering it provides to customers. Alcoa has been a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for eleven consecutive years and approximately 75 percent of all of the aluminum ever produced since 1888 is still in active use today. Alcoa employs approximately 61,000 people in 31 countries across the world.
Source: http://www.alcoa.com/