Rusal to restore mothballed capacity as demand grows

United Company Rusal said yesterday that it has decided to restart it alumina refinery in Jamaica, which was mothballed in 2009 as part of efforts to reduce costs during the credit crisis, as it expects to see considerable growth in demand for aluminium this year. The move will increase the company's alumina production by 321,000 tonnes in 2010 and boost its annual capacity by 650,000 tonnes.

Overall, Rusal plans to increase alumina production by 800,000 tonnes this year and add 100,000 tonnes of aluminium production to meet the increasing appetite for the metal. CRU Group, a London-based consultancy and analysis company focusing on the metals and mining, power, wire and cables, fertiliser and chemicals industries,...