UK industrialist Sanjeev Gupta announced plans to build a global aluminium business after reaching an agreement to acquire Europe’s biggest smelter from Rio Tinto for $500m. He said the purchase of the 280,000 tonne a year Dunkerque smelter was part of a €2 billion plan to build a manufacturing business in northern France producing components for the automotive industry.
Car markers are set to use more aluminium over the next decade, as they look to produce lighter vehicles that are more fuel efficient and have a lower carbon footprint. Gupta said the GFG Alliance, his family’s privately-owned conglomerate, wanted to capitalise on that trend by developing manufacturing activities around the smelter, which employs almost 600 workers and is powered by nuclear energy supplied by EDF.
The Anglo Australian mining company is also seeking buyers for its Isal smelter in Reykjavik and its Pacific Aluminium business as it looks to focus on its best performing assets. Gupta has bought a number of distressed or unwanted industrial assets, with a vision of revitalising UK manufacturing based on recycling scrap metal and powered by renewable energy.
