Sep 21 2005
Hydro's new plant colossus, situated in the estuary of the St. Lawrence in Quebec, Canada, was officially opened on Tuesday.
When Hydro’s board of directors decided in autumn 2002 that the company would participate in the expansion of the Canadian plant Alouette, in which Hydro had acquired a stake through its acquisition of VAW aluminium earlier in the same year, Hydro’s share of the project was estimated to be CAD 368 million or NOK 1.9 billion. Now, when all the 330 new cells have come on stream, the final price tag for Hydro shows a cost of CAD 295 million or ca. NOK 1.6 billion – NOK 300 million below budget.
Alouette II has been the biggest construction project in Quebec. Total investment in the plant amounts to CAD 1.5 billion, more than NOK 7.5 billion.
Truls Gautesen, who headed the Hydro delegation at the inauguration, praised the excellence of the project execution. The project was completed entirely on schedule and in line with the owners’ wishes. Since the original decision was taken in 2002, it was decided to carry out some further operations, but the project still ends up below budget. This is due to the additional tasks costing less than the reserves built into the budget, and to the favorable outcome of a currency hedge.
Safety work has also been performed admirably in Alouette, with the number of lost-time injuries amounting to but a fraction of what they normally are in the Canadian construction industry. This was achieved despite one fatal accident that took place during building work.
Hydro’s share of the plant’s production now stands at 110,000 tonnes, up from 50,000 tonnes prior to expansion. Alouette also has a long-term power contract that places it among the top 10 percent of the world’s aluminium plants, measured in terms of cost-efficiency. This means that Alouette will play a vital role in Hydro’s global metal supply in the future. Given its western Canadian location, Alouette can supply metal to both the American and the European market.
http://www.hydro.com/