Novelis to Close Foil Mill in Bridgnorth, U.K.

ATLANTA, Dec. 14, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Novelis today announced that its foil rolling activities at Bridgnorth, England, and also part of the packaging business on the same site, will cease operations by the end of April 2011.  The announcement comes after a 90-day consultation with the 319 employees at Bridgnorth.

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"Despite significant effort by the Bridgnorth team, unfortunately a viable alternative to closure did not emerge for most of the operation," said Tadeu Nardocci, president of Novelis Europe and senior vice-president of Novelis Inc.  "We thank the employees for their constructive approach during this difficult time."

It is possible that part of the packaging operation at Bridgnorth may be sold as a going concern.  Novelis is in discussions with potential buyers for the printed confectionery packaging business on the site.

The closure and subsequent consolidation of the business into other plants in Novelis' European system aims to improve the competitiveness of the company's overall foil and packaging production system in response to over-capacity in the European foil market and increasing competition from manufacturers in low-cost countries.

The company said that existing customer orders will be fulfilled and clients will be contacted individually regarding the future handling of their business.

About Novelis

Novelis Inc. is the global leader in aluminum rolled products and beverage can recycling.  The company operates in 11 countries, has approximately 11,600 employees and reported revenue of $8.7 billion in fiscal year 2010.  Novelis supplies premium aluminum sheet and foil products throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South America.  Novelis is a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries Limited (BSE: HINDALCO), one of Asia's largest integrated producers of aluminum and a leading copper producer.  Hindalco is a flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India.  For more information, visit www.novelis.com.

SOURCE Novelis Inc.