Alcan Expansion?

By 250 News

Kitimat, B.C. – Over 70 Northern BC contractors will sit down with Rio Tinto Alcan officials today in Kitimat.

RTA’s BC Operations and the Kitimat Modernization Team are hosting vendor-supplier information sessions to outline the contracting and procurement priorities for the upcoming year.  The company has billed the event as a way for local business to hear first-hand about the opportunities that will be available for bidding and the process involved.

Rio Tinto Alcan says the event is part of its commitment to regional economic development and to allow local contractors the chance to plan and prepare, but many are wondering whether some bigger announcement may be in the works.  Media reports indicate that the company may be on the verge of announcing major capital spending projects that could affect projects in BC.

Rio Tinto CFO Guy Elliot told Australian media that the company is about to embark on its first big capital spending for Alcan since it was bought up and that the two most likely options are the $2-billion dollar Kitimat smelter upgrade and a pilot plant in Quebec.  The company has held off on both projects in the wake of the global recession and a drop in demand for aluminum.

This past August, Rio Tinto Alcan announced the construction of a new building and the shutdown of two pot lines at the Kitimat smelter to make way for work related to the modernization project.  The value of the announcements was estimated at $50-million.  At that time, officials said the move was a significant indication that the modernization of the smelter was closer to reality.

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