Sustainability Archives

Strategic Partnership Driving Innovation in Sustainable Aluminium Solutions

The VELUX Group, a global leader in roof windows and skylights and Novelis has signed a long-term commercial agreement to accelerate decarbonization in the building industry. This strategic partnership for low-carbon solutions will see VELUX roof windows and accessories manufactured using flat-rolled aluminium made from over 70% recycled content.

This agreement builds on a 2022 letter of intent to strengthen a shared ambition: reducing CO₂e emissions to a level of < 3 kg CO₂ eq/kg of flat-rolled aluminium used in VELUX roof window coverings and accessories by 2030. The partnership is a shining example of Novelis’ commitment to our Vision 3×30.

This agreement really demonstrates our strong commitment to reach this very ambitious goal within just five years. It also secures the steady supply for several years of a key roof window material with a desirably low carbon footprint. With more than 70% recycled content, this Novelis aluminium is key for our efforts to decarbonise VELUX products.

Klaus Lorentzen, Senior Vice President Products and Innovation, VELUX Group

This partnership with VELUX is a catalyst for transformation and we have made significant progress together in developing alloys that not only meet demanding performance standards but also support a circular economy. At Novelis, we are proud to lead the aluminium industry in advancing high-recycled-content alloys. Partnering with strong brands like VELUX is a testament for sustainable innovation. By giving aluminium scrap new life again and again, we are working towards our 3x30 Vision by becoming the world´s lowest-emissions provider of flat-rolled aluminium.

Michael Hahne, Vice President of Commercial, Novelis Europe

Aluminium is an essential material in VELUX roof windows, particularly for external protection. However, it also represents a major contributor to the company’s scope 3 emissions – those generated across its value chain. By shifting to aluminium with high recycled content, VELUX is taking a major step toward decarbonizing its products.

Recycling aluminium can reduce emissions by up to 95% compared to primary aluminium. The aluminium alloy provided by Novelis to VELUX is specifically optimized for use in roof window production.

Pushing boundaries for low-carbon building materials

Novelis is a leader in driving low-carbon aluminium solutions and has been a supplier to VELUX for more than 40 years. Since 2022, the companies have been collaborating closely to reduce the carbon footprint of the aluminium used in VELUX products. To date, more than 50% of the aluminium supplied by Novelis to VELUX has been replaced with high recycled content, and the partners are working on increasing this amount steadily in the coming years.

Together, VELUX and Novelis are not just reducing emissions – they’re reshaping the future of decarbonize building materials.

For more information please read the official Press Release

Novelis extends its partnership with HES-SO Valais-Wallis, EPFL, and local energy distributor OIKEN to continue the innovative work at the Net Zero Lab Valais. This two-years extension underscores Novelis’ commitment to carbon neutrality and the advancement of sustainable aluminium production.

Since its inception in 2022, the Net Zero Lab Valais, located at Novelis’ Sierre plant, has been focusing on identifying and implementing strategies to achieve carbon neutrality for Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030.

At the end of 2025, an electric pusher furnace is expected to begin operations, replacing a gas furnace. The furnace will be fed by hydro power, thus saving approximately 4,500t CO2eq per year and potentially up to 180,000 CO2eq over the furnace’s lifetime.

Likewise, the initiative to use waste heat from the casting process is progressing and already provides heating for nearby buildings. For the first time last winter (2023/2024), the plant recovered more heat than it consumed for building heating.

Looking ahead, the Net Zero Lab Valais is exploring additional opportunities for decarbonizing high temperature melting processes, like oxyfuel, hydrogen, plasma and biomass.

"Extending our partnership with HES-SO, EPFL, and OIKEN is a testament to our shared vision of a more sustainable future. Collectively, we are driving innovation, reducing Novelis’ carbon footprint, and making meaningful progress toward carbon neutrality while also supporting our communities".

Serge Gaudin, Director Automotive Operations Novelis Europe and Plant Manager Sierre

With the extension of the agreement, Novelis aims to continue its holistic approach to decarbonization, exemplified by its Vision 3x30, a transformative strategy aimed at achieving 75% recycled content across the company’s product range, less than 3 tons of CO2 emissions per ton of flat-rolled aluminium shipped, and advancing circularity through first-mover investments by the end of 2030.

About HES-SO

With over 21,000 students, the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland is Switzerland’s largest university of applied sciences. Like the eight other public universities of applied sciences, the HES-SO has become a key partner in Swiss education and research over the past 20 years.

About EPFL

The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne is one of Europe’s most vibrant and cosmopolitan science and technology institutions.

About OIKEN

With more than 790 million kWh of electricity distributed annually, OIKEN is the largest electricity distributor in the Valais region.

Novelis Inc., a leading producer of flat-rolled aluminium products and the world’s largest recycler of aluminium, proudly announces the production of the world’s first-ever aluminium coil made entirely from 100% recycled, end-of-life automotive scrap. Developed and produced for the European automotive market, this breakthrough marks a significant step toward greater circularity and sustainability in the automotive industry.

This innovative pilot material is suitable for car body outer skin applications, meeting the highest requirements for surface quality and formability. It reinforces Novelis’ commitment to enabling a sustainable aluminium industry while maintaining the highest standards of quality, strength and performance. This achievement is the result of the company’s ongoing journey to constantly increase the amount of recycled content in its products in collaboration with industry partners and automakers.

The aluminium scrap for the 100% recycled automotive aluminium coil was sourced through the Automotive Circularity Platform (ACP), which was initiated together with thyssenkrupp Materials Services, one of the world’s leading mill-independent materials distribution and supply chain service providers. As an open platform, ACP aims to streamline access to high-quality end-of-life material for recycling by digitalizing the market for secondary materials, enhancing supply chain efficiency, and maximizing material recovery from vehicles at the end of the consumer-use cycle.

Automotive customers are constantly looking for ways to decarbonize their products while keeping them light, safe and affordable, and that’s why they turn to us. Producing aluminium from 100% end-of-life vehicle scrap is not only a testament to our dedication to a circular future for aluminium and enhancing the supply of the critical material. It also is a groundbreaking achievement showcasing the potential for significant environmental benefits and the ability to meet the high-performance demands of modern automotive production.

Michael Hahne, Vice President and General Manager, Automotive, Novelis Europe

Novelis is now working to expand the adoption of this technology, enabling automakers to incorporate higher recycled content into future vehicle designs. By increasing industry participation and enhancing the supply chain for end-of-life aluminium scrap, Novelis aims to accelerate the transition to a more circular automotive sector. As a leading sustainable aluminium solutions provider, Novelis already supplies carmakers with products made of up to 85% recycled content, made possible through constant collaboration with customers, closed loop recycling systems for post-production scrap, and the growing collaboration with major suppliers of recyclable materials. We believe expanding the use of end-of-life scrap in aluminium production will further enable the automotive sector to reduce its reliance on virgin materials.

Recycling aluminium is the most efficient way to reduce its carbon footprint, reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions by approximately 95% in comparison with primary aluminium production. The introduction of 100% end-of-life recycled aluminium into automotive production has the potential to dramatically lower the industry’s environmental footprint while advancing a more circular economy.

By continuously innovating and investing in expanding recycling capacity, collaborating with industry leaders, we believe Novelis is paving the way for a more sustainable and resource-efficient future in automotive manufacturing. Through these efforts, Novelis seeks to strengthen its position as a preferred partner for automakers seeking high-performance, low-carbon aluminium solutions.

Novelis Inc., a leading sustainable aluminium solutions provider and world leader in aluminium rolling and recycling, today announced that it has successfully tested using hydrogen fuel to power a recycling furnace at its UK plant in Latchford, Warrington.

The tests were carried out as part of a UK government decarbonization programme and in collaboration with Progressive Energy, an independent UK energy company, and required the installation of new burners, regenerators, and furnace lining material. Using hydrogen instead of the same amount of natural gas when operating a melting furnace can reduce CO2e emissions by up to 90%.

Exploring renewable energy sources, such as hydrogen, making first mover investments, and reducing energy intensity are part of our 3x30 vision to advance aluminium as the material of choice with circular solutions.With the significant expansion of our local recycling capacity, we are transforming the Latchford site into a prototype for high-recycled content and decarbonized aluminium production.

Emilio Braghi, Executive Vice President, Novelis Inc., and President, Novelis Europe

The use of hydrogen is not common in the aluminium industry today and we are very proud to be one of the pioneers to have tested this new fuel at an industrial scale and in a real-world environment. The results from Latchford will drive further research into the potential deployment of hydrogen in our recycling operations worldwide.

Allan Sweeney, Plant Manager, Novelis Latchford

With safety as the top priority of the hydrogen pilot project, several series of tests were conducted by blending different percentages of hydrogen with natural gas (30%-100%) to evaluate the impact on existing infrastructure, and equipment compatibility. During the trial campaign, several hundred tonnes of 3000 series scrap aluminium alloy were remelted and cast into sheet ingots. In addition, all relevant parameters were measured to assess any impact on the product, process, operating environment, and environmental emissions.

Further downstream processing, including rolling and finishing, will be now completed at other Novelis plants in Europe to establish the real ‘end-to-end’ parameters of a hydrogen-based, recycled alloy production process. Following the full post-trial evaluation and assessments, a report will be released as part of the UK government’s Industrial Fuel Switching programme later this year.

The demonstration project at Novelis Latchford is part of the UK government’s Industrial Fuel Switching Competition programme. Supported with a grant of £4.6 million, as part of the £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio and the wider regional HyNet project, the programme is designed to support industry to decarbonise their operations through a switch from natural gas to low carbon hydrogen. As the UK’s leading industrial decarbonisation cluster, HyNet will decarbonise industry across the North West and North Wales through the production, transportation and storage of low-carbon hydrogen, and through capturing industry’s carbon dioxide emissions through Carbon Capture Solutions. Novelis has been a partner in the HyNet project since 2017 and is supporting the development of the regional infrastructure project.  

Novelis is also conducting its own technical feasibility studies into the use of hydrogen as a direct replacement for natural gas, and more generally, Novelis research and development teams worldwide continue to investigate the possibility of using plasma and electricity to supply energy to its production plants.

As announced in July 2024, Novelis is investing approximately $90 million to double the recycling capacity for used beverage cans (UBCs) at its plant in Latchford. The project will increase the facility’s UBC recycling capacity by 85 kilotonnes per year and decrease Novelis Europe’s CO2e by more than 350,000 tonnes annually. The project is expected to begin commissioning in December 2026.

Furthermore, as part of its new Novelis 3×30 vision, the company has set new ambitious sustainability targets to achieve by the end of 2030, including increasing recycled content to 75% from today’s 63%, reducing carbon emissions to less than 3 tonnes CO2e per tonne aluminium shipped, and continuing to lead the industry to circularity through first-mover investments. These are in addition to the company’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2050 or sooner. Along with using higher amounts of recycled content, decarbonization of the company’s melting processes and energy sources are important levers to delivering lower-carbon, highly sustainable aluminium solutions.

In support of our commitment to environmental stewardship, our Pindamonhangaba plant in Brazil has successfully completed a project to improve water quality and expand storage capacity at a nearby lake. The initiative involved comprehensive measures, including the installation of state-of-the-art equipment to control algae, the strategic planting of more than 1,400 native trees along the lake’s shore, and the removal of sediment. These efforts have significantly boosted the lake’s capacity, soaring from 24,000 cubic meters (m3) to an impressive 40,000 m3. This project marks a substantial improvement in the local environment, reflecting Novelis’ dedication to sustainability and community well-being.

Project Highlights:

– Equipment Installation: Cutting-edge ultrasonic equipment with online sensors for monitoring crucial water quality parameters was deployed to control algae growth. This system continuously tracks water quality, providing real-time insights into the lake’s conditions.

– Native Tree Planting: more than 1,400 native trees were planted along the lake’s shore, contributing to the restoration of the area and enhancing its ecological value.

– Sediment Removal: The project included the removal of sediment from the lake, ensuring not just increased capacity but improved overall water quality.

Novelis remains dedicated to sustainability initiatives that positively impact the environment and the communities we serve. This project reflects our ongoing commitment to fostering a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable world.

In a significant move towards bolstering recycling infrastructure and sustainability, Novelis extends its support for the Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act recently introduced by U.S. House Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Mikie Sherrill on November 1, 2023. This legislation, designed to enhance recycling accessibility, particularly in underserved communities, is garnering bipartisan support and widespread acclaim from key stakeholders. The House bill mirrors a Senate bill introduced earlier this year by Senators Tom Carper, Shelley Moore Capito and John Boozman.

Chris Cerone, Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications at Novelis, expressed enthusiasm for the proactive, market-oriented approach of the Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act. Cerone emphasized the positive impact the legislation could have on the economy and the environment, especially for critical materials like aluminum.

“As the world’s largest recycler of aluminum, Novelis applauds Congresswoman Miller-Meeks’ introduction of the Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act. Expanding recycling access through the creation of public-private partnerships in underserved recycling communities, especially for critical materials like aluminum, is good for the economy and environment,” stated Cerone.

The Act aims to address the challenges of America’s fragmented recycling system by establishing a pilot program to improve recycling accessibility in communities lacking sufficient infrastructure. Novelis, recognizing the importance of sustainable practices, sees this legislation as a crucial step towards achieving a more circular economy and reducing the environmental impact of recyclable materials.

Novelis encourages the development of public-private partnerships and welcomes the proposed legislation as a means to further enhance recycling efforts across the nation. The company remains committed to supporting initiatives that contribute to a more sustainable future and will continue to help build support for the Senate and House bills.

EPW Committee Advances Bipartisan Recycling Legislation – Majority News – U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works

In a world witnessing a surge in aluminium demand, Novelis and Ball Corporation, both members of the First Movers Coalition (FMC), are leading the charge towards sustainability through a pioneering collaboration. As highlighted in a recent article by the World Economic Forum, the aluminium industry faces the imperative of meeting a projected 40% increase in global demand by 2030.

The challenges lie in the emissions-intensive nature of primary aluminium production, where about 70% is still derived through energy-intensive refining and smelting processes. The call for decarbonization has prompted innovative strategies, and the collaboration between Novelis and Ball Corporation stands out as a beacon of progress.

This dynamic partnership is not only based on a closed-loop arrangement but also extends its influence globally, working with various stakeholders throughout the manufacturing supply chain to enhance recycling rates and bolster the availability of aluminium scrap for recycling.

The recycling industry plays a pivotal role in this sustainable narrative. With recycled aluminium accounting for one-third of the global supply, and estimates suggesting that 75% of all aluminium ever produced is still in circulation, the focus on recyclers and the production of low-carbon recycled products is paramount.

Novelis, as a global leader in aluminium recycling, acknowledges the critical role of secondary, recycled aluminium in mitigating the environmental impact of the industry. The collaborative efforts between Novelis and Ball Corporation showcase a harmonized approach to recycling, contributing to increased efficiencies in collection and production of recycled aluminium.

As we navigate the complex landscape of aluminium production, the collaboration between Novelis and Ball Corporation stands as a testament to the power of partnerships in driving positive change. By combining their strengths, these FMC members are actively contributing to the broader goal of decarbonizing primary aluminium production and fostering a greener future for the aluminium industry.

Read the full article here: Aluminium demand is rising – here’s how to make it sustainable | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

By Suzanne Lindsay-Walker, Vice President Sustainability

Anyone familiar with Novelis knows we are a company truly committed to our purpose of Shaping a Sustainable World Together. We are constantly seeking ways to improve our processes, explore new avenues of innovation, and partner with like-minded companies toward an objective of reducing our CO₂ footprint.

That aspiration is reflected in a forward-thinking partnership with Southern Company that focuses on decarbonization efforts at our aluminum recycling and rolling plant being built in Bay Minette, Alabama. The recently announced agreement leverages Southern Company’s global leading expertise in identifying and implementing the energy industry’s best carbon reduction solutions for the aluminum industry.

The Bay Minette facility will help meet growing demand for more sustainable beverage packaging and support the North American automotive industry, including the increase in electric vehicle production. To do so, Novelis will produce approximately 600 kilotonnes of finished aluminum goods per year (at full ramp) – and we aim to meet that production goal while also achieving carbon neutrality for Scopes 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions.

One key to that objective is the renewable energy that Southern Company subsidiary, Alabama Power, will supply to the Bay Minette plant. Novelis is providing direct financial support for two 80-megawatt solar power generation plants that are major infrastructure components to deliver carbon-free electricity to the facility.

The goal is to use the sun’s free, abundant and clean energy for more than half of the Bay Minette facility’s renewable energy needs while eliminating an estimated 192 kilotons of CO2 emissions that would result from legacy power generation resources annually.

But that’s just the first step…

The partnership will also support testing and evaluation of new technologies for low-carbon aluminum production that may be implemented in Bay Minette and perhaps other Novelis facilities globally with a goal of further reducing Novelis’ Scope 1 emissions. Southern Company has done long-term testing of more than 75 carbon capture technologies, simulating different impurities, stack gases and other variables. This work has generated significant data about which technologies are best suited for a given manufacturing environment, and Novelis will have access to that expertise to inform potential implementation at Bay Minette and elsewhere.

Complementing those efforts, Novelis will also draw on Southern Company’s expertise in carbon sequestration, energy storage, electrification of thermal processes and other promising advancements that are being considered for Bay Minette.

Our intention is to make the plant the first-of-its-kind to operate entirely on decarbonized electricity, reflective of our position as one of the world’s leading sustainable aluminum solutions providers.

This is one of several Novelis green energy projects under way globally. We built our first onsite solar park in Pieve, Italy, earlier this year; we are testing the use of hydrogen-fueled recycling furnaces at Novelis Latchford in Warrington, UK; we installed nearly 1,000 photovoltaic solar panels at 14 used beverage can collection centers across Brazil, aiming to make them self-sufficient for power needs and reducing their carbon footprint; and we launched a collaboration to provide solar power for the community in Sierre, Switzerland, from the 5,000 square meters of solar panels installed atop our plant.

We still have many solutions to implement on our way to becoming carbon neutral by 2050 or sooner and the commitment to Bay Minette is an important step in that direction. We look forward to taking what we learn there and adapting it to support decarbonization of our facilities and those of other companies along the global supply chain.

Our commitment to decarbonization and the various ongoing sustainability projects in Europe led to a nomination and finalist position in the German Sustainability Award’s ‘Metal industry’ category.

With our strong focus on full circularity and our ambitious decarbonization and sustainability goals, Novelis is a frontrunner in the industry. Our agenda to reduce the carbon footprint of our production by 30% by 2026 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 or sooner was very positively recognized at this year´s German Sustainability Award. This, together with our current sustainability lighthouse projects, such as the HyNet hydrogen trial in Latchford, the building of our onsite solar park in Pieve and the diverse collaborations in the automotive sector on end-of-life, convinced a 140-member jury. Novelis Europe’s business efforts of the past year led to a nomination and a position as top 4 finalists in the German Sustainability Award in the “Metal industry” category.

The German Sustainability Award honors pioneering contributions to the transformation to a sustainable future in line with the goals of the 2030 Agenda. As Europe’s biggest award for ecological and social commitment, this nomination is a genuine recognition of our sustainability efforts.

This is a very valuable acknowledgement for our sustainability leadership in the German market and beyond. Together with our customers and partners, we are constantly developing new, high-recycled products and improving the quality of scrap recycling to achieve full circularity. Besides our strong focus on circularity, we set ourselves apart by announcing the most ambitious sustainability goals among our peers and a current average recycled content of 61% across our product portfolio – almost double the market average of 32%. I am very proud of our achievements this year and thank everyone for their impactful contribution to this success!

Emilio Braghi, EVP & President Novelis Europe.

Among the four finalists, Novelis was the last aluminium manufacturer. This year´s German Sustainability Award in the metal industry goes to Swiss Steel company. At ceremony on November 23, we also received our finalist certificate at the ceremony in Düsseldorf, Germany and had the opportunity to exchange with winners and finalists on how to accelerate the transformation all together. We congratulate all winners – it´s good to see so many companies increasing their efforts to progress towards a greener and more sustainable future.

More information on the German Sustainability Award in the category “Metal Industry” (German page): Metallindustrie | Deutscher Nachhaltigkeitspreis

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Strategic Partnership Driving Innovation in Sustainable Aluminium Solutions