Constellium facility to receive DOE investment

Paris-based aluminum recycler and metals producer Constellium's facility in Ravenswood, West Virginia, has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations for an investment of up to $75 million as part of the Industrial Demonstrations Program (IDP).

The investment will help fund the implementation of low-to-no emissions technologies in the company’s Ravenswood facility, supporting the decarbonization of its casthouses—regarded as the plant’s most energy intensive operation.

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Constellium says the government funding will support the installation of low-emissions SmartMelt furnaces that can operate using a range of fuels—including hydrogen—paving the way toward a zero-carbon casthouse. In addition to reducing carbon emissions, the company expects the project to help maximize recycled scrap intake and to improve worker safety with the introduction of a hands-free casting process.

“We are honored and proud to have been selected for this investment and express our gratitude to the Department of Energy for their support of Constellium and the aluminum industry,” Constellium CEO Jean-Marc Germain says. “Public investments such as the ones made through the Inflation Reduction Act are essential to accelerate the decarbonization of our industry, and we are looking forward to working with the DOE to promote a competitive and sustainable domestic aluminum industry.”

The project also will contribute to the local communities around Ravenswood with a dedicated budget to build a new training and wellness center for all employees and on-site childcare, as well as provide financial and technical resources for local schools and universities.

Constellium’s Ravenswood plant, one of the world’s largest aluminum rolled products facilities, was built in 1957 and boasts over 1,200 employees. The facility produces plate, sheet and coil products for aerospace, defense, transportation, marine and industrial uses.

In its 2023 sustainability report, Constellium indicates the Ravenswood facility consumes a relatively modest amount of scrap compared with its Muscle Shoals, Alabama, facility for the beverage container market. While about 340,000 metric tons of aluminum scrap is consumed in Alabama each year, the Ravenswood facility currently accepts just 20,000 tons of what Constellium calls “preconsumer” scrap per year.

“We are proud to partner with the federal government to accelerate zero-carbon technologies and reduce carbon emissions,” says Brian E. McCallie, vice president of Constellium Rolled Products Ravenswood. “This investment will not only support our facility in Ravenswood, a long-term supplier of the aerospace and defense industry, but also contribute to the community we proudly serve.”

Constellium Ravenswood now will enter negotiations on the specific terms of the investment, including operational milestones and timing of access to funds throughout the life of the project, estimated to be approximately five years.

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“Ravenswood’s aluminum industry started here in 1957 and helped drive the economy of this town for generations. But, as the people of this community know, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing,” Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia says. “The people of West Virginia and Ravenswood have sacrificed for generations to provide the energy and raw materials our nation needed to become the greatest industrial might the world has ever seen. I am proud that this $75 million investment will continue that legacy and help to grow the aluminum industry in Ravenswood while bringing new economic opportunity to the entire Mountain State.”