ALRO, one of the largest vertically integrated aluminium producers in Europe, measured by production capacity, today publishes the Consolidated Sustainability Report for the year 2022, which presents the role of ALRO Group in the national and local economy, its environmental protection programs, social involvement, as well as the implemented sustainable strategy.
“At ALRO, we firmly believe that sustainability is not just an obligation but a strategic imperative. We recognize the pressing challenges posed by climate change, resource depletion, and social inequality, and we are fully committed to addressing them in a comprehensive and proactive manner”, said Marian Năstase, Chairman of ALRO’s Board of Directors. “We have continued to invest in research and development to drive technological advancements that promote sustainability throughout our value chain”, added Marian Năstase.
In 2022, despite a difficult international environment, characterized by prohibitive increases in energy costs, the Group continued its strategic investments, focused on decreasing energy consumption and increasing the percentage of recycled aluminium. Thus, the project to modernize the electrolysis potrooms was continued, and the scrap recycled in the EcoRecycling Facility and in the Cast House reached approximately 90,000 tonnes. In fact, since 2013, since the aluminium recycling facility was put into operation, almost 700,000 tonnes have been recycled.
“Our ambition is to become a green factory, innovative and sustainable with the support of state-of-the-art technologies, but also to strengthen our competitiveness by increasing the production mix in favour of high and very high value-added products”, said Gheorghe Dobra, Chief Executive Officer of ALRO. “Aluminium is one of the strongest decarbonising vectors in the economy, making our Group one of the key players in achieving the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement and the European Green Deal on climate neutrality”, added Gheorghe Dobra.
The investments in increasing energy efficiency, the cut-down of the production of electrolytic aluminium and the increase of the production of recycled aluminium also led to a significant reduction of the Group’s direct and indirect emissions in 2022, compared to 2021. In addition, water efficiency programs have led to significant reductions in extraction and consumption. Thus, in 2022, the total amount of surface water extracted was 1,829 million liters (2021: 2,386 million liters).
In addition to measures to reduce the industrial footprint and increase operational efficiency, the Group also invests in its employees and future employees. ALRO supports two dual education classes, has partnerships with the main profile universities for the training of future employees. Moreover, it invests in specialization programs, last year recording more than 27,000 hours of professional training.
In 2022, ALRO continued its strategy of supporting the local communities where it operates, getting involved in social projects in the fields of health, education, and environmental protection. Moreover, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the Group has donated over 2.5 million RON to institutions involved in preventing and combating the effects of the pandemic.
