An Alcoa construction project began Friday at the Deschambault smelter in the Capitale-Nationale region to increase casting center capacity and create a small ingot production line.
Constructed in an existing building, the $9.8 million project is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2023.
It comes in addition to the two vertical pouring chutes already in the plant.
“We are working directly with a customer to integrate this manufacturing capability to meet specific needs in the North American market,” said Kelly Thomas, executive vice president and chief commercial officer, in a statement.
Small billet production meets customers’ needs for value-added products such as foundry alloys for the automotive industry.
“This project, which will enable the sustainable production of high quality aluminum, will add to the competitiveness of our existing Canadian portfolio and we are very proud of it,” added Louis Langlois, President of Alcoa Canada.
The smelter has already completed an energy infrastructure project to increase production.
Note that the plant has a rated capacity of 287,000 tons of aluminum per year.