Tomago aluminium smelter
Encyclopedia
The Tomago aluminium smelter
is located at Tomago
, New South Wales
, Australia
, approximately 13 km West of Newcastle
. It is a major industrial site in the Port Stephens LGA. The smelter has a production capacity of 520,000 tonnes of aluminium (ingot, billet and slab) per year.
It is operated by Tomago Aluminium Company, a joint venture owned by:
AP18 technology. Two potlines with 240 pots each were built and operated at 181 kA for a production of 240,000 tonnes per year. In 1993, a third AP18 potline with 280 pots was commissioned.
After potline 3 start up, current on the three potlines was 182 kA for a production of 385 000 tonnes per year. In 1998, the potlines 1 and 2 were extended with 20 pots at the end of each room, making 280 cell per line. The production of Tomago was increased by 50,000 tonnes to 435,000 tonnes per year. In 2002 the plant commenced the AP22 project to reach the a line current of 226 kA in 2007.
AP18 (AP22) reduction cells each.
Aluminium smelting
Aluminium smelting is the process of extracting aluminium from its oxide alumina, generally by the Hall-Héroult process. Alumina is extracted from the ore Bauxite by means of the Bayer process at an alumina refinery....
is located at Tomago
Tomago, New South Wales
Tomago is a combined industrial/semi-rural suburb of the Port Stephens Local Government Area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located just north of the Hunter River and west of the body of water known as Fullerton Cove...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, approximately 13 km West of Newcastle
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
. It is a major industrial site in the Port Stephens LGA. The smelter has a production capacity of 520,000 tonnes of aluminium (ingot, billet and slab) per year.
It is operated by Tomago Aluminium Company, a joint venture owned by:
- Rio Tinto Alcan, 51.55%
- Gove Aluminium Finance Ltd, 36.05% (owned 70% by CSR LimitedCSR LimitedCSR Limited is a major Australian industrial company, producing aluminium and building products. It is publicly traded on the Australian Securities Exchange. In 2009, it has approximately 10,000 employees and during a period of a major cyclical downturn the company made an after-tax profit of...
and 30% by AMP LimitedAMP LimitedAMP Limited is an Australian financial corporation. It operates primarily in Australia and New Zealand. AMP formed in 1849 as the Australian Mutual Provident Society, a non-profit life insurance company. In 1998 it was demutualised and listed on the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges...
) - Hydro AluminiumNorsk HydroNorsk Hydro ASA is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. Hydro is the fourth largest integrated aluminium company worldwide. It has operations in some 40 countries around the world and is active on all continents. The Norwegian state holds a 43.8 percent...
, 12.40%
History
The Tomago plant was started in 1983 using PechineyPechiney
Pechiney SA was a major aluminium conglomerate based in France. The company was acquired in 2003 by the Alcan Corporation, headquartered in Canada...
AP18 technology. Two potlines with 240 pots each were built and operated at 181 kA for a production of 240,000 tonnes per year. In 1993, a third AP18 potline with 280 pots was commissioned.
After potline 3 start up, current on the three potlines was 182 kA for a production of 385 000 tonnes per year. In 1998, the potlines 1 and 2 were extended with 20 pots at the end of each room, making 280 cell per line. The production of Tomago was increased by 50,000 tonnes to 435,000 tonnes per year. In 2002 the plant commenced the AP22 project to reach the a line current of 226 kA in 2007.
Technology
The smelter currently comprises three potlines of 280 PechineyPechiney
Pechiney SA was a major aluminium conglomerate based in France. The company was acquired in 2003 by the Alcan Corporation, headquartered in Canada...
AP18 (AP22) reduction cells each.
External links
- Tomago Aluminium corporate web site