ALCAN'S SOLUTION TREATS INDUSTRIAL RESIDUE.Alcan Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange , TSX TSX Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE before April, 2002) TSX Transfer from Stack Pointer to Index TSX True Space Extension : AL), Montreal, has developed a value- creating and sustainable solution for the treatment of spent potlining (SPL (1) (Systems Programming Language) The assembly language for the HP 3000 series. See assembly language for an SPL program example. (2) (Structured Programming Language) See structured programming. 1. ) and will invest up to CAN $150 million in the construction of a treatment plant in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint- Jean region. "We are particularly proud since the technology we will be using at this plant was developed by Alcan's R&D team in the province of Quebec," said Cynthia Carroll Cynthia Carroll is an American businesswoman. She is the chief executive officer of Anglo American PLC, a Johannesburg, South Africa mining company, which, among other things, is the world's largest platinum producer. , president of Alcan's Primary Metal Group. "This home-grown technology will not only treat the SPL, but also completely recycle the component substances. We have here a great example of Alcan innovation and our commitment to finding sustainable and financially attractive solutions. The new plant will be an example for the rest of the aluminum industry." The 80,000-tonne-per-year treatment facility will be built in Saguenay and will create 50 new direct jobs in the region. It will use Alcan's Low Caustic Leaching & Liming (LCLL LCLL Lesley College Ludcke Library (Cambridge, MA) ) Process. Construction is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2004. The new treatment plant will reduce Alcan's treatment costs and will provide the opportunity to treat the SPL of other aluminum producers. "Most aluminum producers are wrestling to find a way of treating SPL that also creates value," continued Ms. Carroll. "Using the principles of Maximizing Value, Alcan identified LCLL as the most attractive option and moved forward with further developing the technology." Alcan will now proceed with obtaining the necessary governmental and environmental authorizations, and is encouraged by the interest of both federal and provincial governments, which have already recognized the value of the technology and the potential for commercialization. Spent potlining is the material removed from the bottom of electrolytic cells electrolytic cell n. 1. A cell containing an electrolyte through which an externally generated electric current is passed by a system of electrodes in order to produce an electrochemical reaction. 2. used to produce aluminum. Over the course of their five-to-eight-year lifespan, various chemicals accumulate in the lining of the cells during smelting smelting, in metallurgy, any process of melting or fusion, especially to extract a metal from its ore. Smelting processes vary in detail depending on the nature of the ore and the metal involved, but they are typified in the use of the blast furnace. . The lining must be treated or stored in accordance with government regulations. Finding an effective way to treat SPL has been a crucial environmental issue for the aluminum industry. Alcan is a multinational, market-driven company and a global leader in aluminum and packaging, as well as aluminum recycling with 2002 revenues of US$12.5 billion. With world-class operations in primary aluminum, fabricated fab·ri·cate tr.v. fab·ri·cat·ed, fab·ri·cat·ing, fab·ri·cates 1. To make; create. 2. To construct by combining or assembling diverse, typically standardized parts: aluminum as well as flexible and specialty packaging, Alcan is well positioned to meet and exceed its customers' needs for innovative solutions and service. Alcan employs 54,000 people and has operating facilities in 42 countries. For more information, call 514/848-1355 or visit http://www.alcan.com. |
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