COMMONWEALTH ALUMINUM INTRODUCES NEW PRICING STRUCTURE.

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 1, 1995--Commonwealth Aluminum Corporation (Nasdaq/NM: CALC) today announced a new pricing structure which more closely reflects prevailing metal costs in the market. The new pricing plan, called Custom Conversion, represents a bold departure from current industry pricing practices that call for a "book price" on finished rolled aluminum products. Since these stated book prices change infrequently, they often poorly reflect actual underlying aluminum costs, which fluctuate daily on the world market.

"The knowledgeable aluminum customer is demanding pricing options that more closely reflect true cost," said John J. Wasz, Vice President - Marketing and Sales. "Custom conversion pricing allows our distributor customers and Original Equipment Manufacturers to choose the metal option that best meets their needs and, in turn, the needs of their customers. Under our new program, customers can choose order pricing based on metal prices at the time of order entry, at the time of shipment, or on an index based on the previous month~s metal price. These options will yield more knowledgeable and informed buying decisions based on true underlying demand trends, unlike in the past when artificial aluminum sheet prices were maintained in spite of changing business conditions."

Under Custom Conversion pricing, which becomes effective for all orders placed on or after September 1 and all orders scheduled to ship the week ending October 7 and later, Commonwealth will isolate the metal component of an order's cost using one of three methods selected by the customer:

- Order entry, based on the date of future delivery;

- Index, based on the market price for the last eight trading

days of the previous order period; or

- Shipment, based on the market price on the day following

shipment.

Each order will be quoted to include a metal component, a conversion charge, and any applicable additional charges.

"In many respects, this new pricing methodology allows us to meet our customers' needs better and focus on the ever-increasing service and quality requirements of our end-use markets," Wasz added. "Custom Conversion formalizes our efforts to focus on what is important to our industry, the value added throughout the process."

During the first half of 1995, Commonwealth Aluminum posted net sales totaling $366.1 million, up 62% from the year-earlier period. Sales volume for the period was 317.4 million pounds.

Commonwealth Aluminum is one of North America's leading manufacturers of aluminum sheet for the transportation, construction and consumer durables end-use markets. The Company manufactures a variety of common alloy products in the form of aluminum sheet at its Lewisport, Kentucky rolling mill, one of the largest multi-purpose aluminum rolling mills in North America.

CONTACT: Commonwealth Aluminum Corp., Louisville

John J. Wasz, 502/589-8116