Local Aluminium Companies To Suffer

Aluminium companies in the country are weighing the effects of the expected closure of another pot line of the Volta Aluminium Company Limited (VALCO). Reeling under pressure from government to shut down two pot lines, the American company reportedly shut down one pot line last Saturday.

This has reduced its total production capacity from 160,000 to 120,000 metric tones. With the expected reduction in output when the second pot line is shut, VALCO will be unable to meet the demand from its clients, which includes Ghana’s Aluworks Limited.

Sources close to Aluworks say if VALCO is unable to meet the supply needs of its major clients, it will not supply aluminium to Aluworks. The company will therefore have to start importing raw materials at relatively expensive rates.

Many of the aluminium product manufacturers in the country rely on Aluworks for their raw materials and might also start sourcing for their requirements outside the country. They say the shut down of VALCO’s pot lines could affect their companies in the long term.