Novelis Opens New Aluminum Automotive Heat Treatment Line in Europe to Deepen Commitment to Global Automakers

ATLANTA and NACHTERSTEDT, Germany, Nov. 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Novelis, the world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, today celebrated the opening of a state-of-the-art aluminum automotive heat treatment line in Nachterstedt, Germany, to serve European and global automotive customers. Located adjacent to Novelis' existing rolling mill and the world's largest aluminum recycling center, the $85 million investment will increase production capacity by 120,000 metric tons of automotive sheet annually.

At full production, this line will increase Novelis' European automotive sheet capacity to 350,000 metric tons per year and will provide global customers with high-quality automotive sheet, including the Novelis Advanz™ portfolio of alloys used in lightweight vehicle structures and body panels. Since 2011, Novelis has invested more than $550 million globally to triple its automotive sheet capacity.

"Coupled with our recent automotive expansions in North America and Asia, the opening of the new production line in Europe strengthens our industry leadership in the automotive market and uniquely positions Novelis to serve our global customers," said Steve Fisher, President and CEO of Novelis. "As automakers increasingly turn to aluminum to achieve better fuel efficiency and reduce CO₂ emissions in their vehicles, Novelis remains the supplier of choice and the only manufacturer of automotive aluminum sheet in the three major auto-producing regions of the world."

As the world's leading supplier of aluminum flat rolled products, Novelis partners with leading automakers such as Jaguar Land Rover, BMW and Ford to supply the next generation of aluminum vehicles. Novelis aluminum can be found in more than 180 different vehicle models in production today. Together with its customers, Novelis is developing innovative aluminum alloy solutions for high volume production that achieve high levels of strength, safety and performance.

"For more than forty years, Novelis has been delivering high-end automotive aluminum sheet to Europe's leading automakers, and we continue to grow our capacity in line with our customers' needs," said Erwin Mayr, President of Novelis Europe. "Our newest finishing line in Nachterstedt was built and commissioned in response to our customers' success, bringing online new capacity at the optimum time to serve growing demand for our aluminum in Europe."  

With this expansion, the company widens its global manufacturing operations to serve the rapidly growing automotive market. The technology used in the new Nachterstedt finishing line is identical to that of the lines recently commissioned in the United States and China, providing Novelis' global customers with the highest level of quality and consistency regardless of location. With 56 newly created jobs and 1,200 employees in total, the Nachterstedt complex is the biggest facility of the nine Novelis plants across Europe and one of the biggest employers in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.

About Novelis
Novelis Inc. is the global leader in aluminum rolled products and the world's largest recycler of aluminum. The company operates in 11 countries, has approximately 11,500 employees and reported $11.1 billion in revenue for its 2015 fiscal year. Novelis supplies premium aluminum sheet and foil products to transportation, packaging, construction, industrial and consumer electronics markets throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South America. The company is a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries Limited, part of the Aditya Birla Group, a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India. For more information, visit novelis.com and follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/NovelisInc and Twitter at twitter.com/Novelis.

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SOURCE Novelis Inc.