Inert Anode Technology

The Metals segment of En+ Group has produced the world’s lowest carbon aluminium, in a major breakthrough for the industry. The company has successfully produced aluminium with the industry's lowest carbon footprint - less than 0.01 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne of metal (Scope 1, Scope 2 - direct and indirect energy emissions). The purity of the aluminium produced is higher than 99%.

The metal was produced at the Group’s experimental industrial site of the Company’s new-generation inert anode electrolysers, located at the Krasnoyarsk Aluminium Plant (KrAZ). The capacity of the new electrolyser is about 1 tonne of aluminium per day at a current of 140,000 A.

Lord Barker of Battle, Executive Chairman of En+ Group, said:

“As part of our Net Zero commitment in January this year we announced sector-beating targets for carbon reduction – net zero by 2050 and to reduce emissions by at least 35% by 2030. Today I am proud to announce that we have made a major step forward on this journey, in a major breakthrough for the industry.

This is revolutionary technology in which inert anodes replace standard carbon anodes with inert, non-consumable materials – ceramics or alloys, which results in a major reduction of emissions from the smelting process. In comparison to full-scope industry average emissions, metal produced with inert anodes has an 85% lower carbon footprint.

Another breakthrough advantage of this technology is the release of oxygen in the process of aluminium production. One inert anode cell can generate the same volume of oxygen as 70 hectares of forest.”

En+ Group Metals segment is the world’s leader in the development of inert anode technology. The breakthrough technology is recognized by the En+ Group as a revolutionary environmental solution in metallurgy, driving the emissions-intensive production of aluminium towards net zero. Inert anodes replace standard carbon anodes with inert, non-consumable materials – ceramics or alloys, which results in a reduction of emissions from the smelting process. In comparison to full-scope industry average emissions, metal produced with inert anodes has an 85% lower carbon footprint.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a key strategic goal of the En+ Group. To achieve this, the Company is modernizing its facilities, introducing the best available technologies as well as developing new ones. The Group is ramping up production of its low carbon aluminium brand, ALLOW, and the Group’s production carbon footprint is already several times lower than the industry average. En+ Group Metals segment is also creating a line of economical, lightweight and highly durable aluminium-scandium alloys, to reduce carbon footprint levels in the transport sector.

The Group is also working to improve its own carbon footprint assessment, working with partners to create universal methodologies that will ensure the transparency and comparability of carbon footprint assessments between different manufacturers. In 2015, En+ Group Metals segment joined the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative, an international initiative that promotes responsible planning, production and resource management in the aluminium industry. En+ Group has announced its ambition to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and to reduce greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions by at least 35% by 2030[1]. These stretching targets cover absolute emissions across all operations, including aluminium production plus heat and electricity production. In 2020, En+ Group published the low-carbon aluminium concept – “Green Aluminum Vision”.

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[1] Scope 1 and 2, as benchmarked against the Group’s 2018 GHG emissions.