ISAL

Hafnarfjörður

Our ISAL aluminium smelter in Hafnarfjörður in Iceland began operations in 1969. Today, it produces 184,000 tonnes of some of the highest quality, lowest carbon footprint aluminium in the world, with 100% of our electricity generated from clean, renewable hydropower, supplied by the power company Landsvirkjun.

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Reducing emissions

We are committed to continually finding ways to reduce our impact on the environment. One of the ways we do this is by focusing on reducing our emissions of carbon dioxide. Through ongoing education, improved maintenance and use of technology, we have, since 1990, reduced such emissions by around 75% per tonne of aluminium produced.

In 2021, we partnered with Carbfix to implement a technology for capturing carbon and permanently storing it underground at our ISAL aluminium smelter. Liquified CO₂ will be captured from European industrial plants and transported to Iceland by specifically designed ships operating on sustainable fuel. The world’s first carbon mineral storage hub, the Coda Terminal, will house the liquified CO₂. Carbfix plans to drill the first injection wells for the Coda Terminal in 2022, with shipments of CO₂ starting in 2025.

With safe and economic carbon storage at its doorstep, ISAL is an ideal site to become the first smelter where carbon capture and storage is implemented in the aluminium industry. We will work together with Carbfix to advance carbon capture solutions that are already being tested in production cells at ISAL, with the aim of using the Carbfix technology to further decarbonise the plant.

ISAL communities

We support and partner with community-led initiatives in Hafnarfjörður. Most of our support and sponsorship focuses on sports development for young people.

We also sponsor the annual Icelandic Optimist Award. The award has a long history in Iceland – it was established in 1981 – and is awarded by the President of Iceland to an Icelandic artist who, through their art, has contributed to an optimistic outlook on life, inspiring others.

Responsible aluminium

In 2021, the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) granted its Performance Standard and Chain of Custody certifications to our ISAL aluminium smelter. ASI certification means customers can be assured that the aluminium they purchase has been produced to the highest environmental, social and governance standards, ranging from greenhouse gas emissions to human rights.