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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Novelis Plans Guthrie, Kentucky, Automotive Recycling Complex

01/12/2022
Novelis Inc., the world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, will invest $365 million to build a highly advanced recycling center, adjacent to the company’s existing automotive finishing plant in Guthrie, Kentucky. The project is expected to create 140 new jobs.

The new facility will be equipped with industry-leading processes and capabilities, including advanced shredding and sorting technology, as well as energy-efficient innovations to support the company's sustainability goal to reduce energy intensity by 10 percent by 2026. Groundbreaking is scheduled for early 2022, with commissioning expected in 2024.

"We are excited about this new investment in Kentucky, which will help Novelis achieve its sustainability goals, as well as support the carbon-reduction targets of our automotive customers," said Tom Boney, Executive Vice President and President of Novelis North America. "The Commonwealth of Kentucky has been a great business partner for many years and has a strong, highly skilled workforce to meet the growing need for high-strength, low-carbon aluminum. We look forward to deepening our relationships with community leaders to ensure our facility has a lasting, beneficial impact in the region."

The center will enable Novelis to grow its closed-loop-recycling programs with more automotive customers in North America. Through closed-loop recycling, the company takes back the aluminum remaining after automotive parts are stamped from sheets and remakes it into the same product for new vehicle production. The center will also have the capability to process aluminum from vehicles at the end of their lifecycle. Using recycled aluminum as input material requires only 5 percent of the energy used to make primary aluminum, thus avoiding 95 percent of the carbon emissions associated with production.

"As we continue to build back throughout Western Kentucky, companies are committed to creating quality job opportunities for Kentucky families," Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said. "I had the chance to join Novelis for the grand opening of the company's automotive aluminum finishing plant just over two months ago, and its leadership's decision to quickly move forward with plans for expansion is tremendous news. Novelis is proving to be a great fit for Todd County and the surrounding area, and I am eager to see the company continue to grow for years to come."

The announcement is on the heels of Novelis' October grand opening of the automotive finishing plant in Guthrie, which currently employs 150 people and will grow to 190 over the next two years. In addition to the automotive finishing facility, the company operates an aluminum beverage can recycling plant in?Berea and the Logan Aluminum joint venture in Russellville.

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