Alcoa signed a long-term contract with GE Aviation for jet engine components in an agreement valued at more than $1.5 billion. Under the deal, Alcoa will supply advanced nickel-based super-alloy, titanium and aluminum components for a broad range of GE Aviation engine programs.
In related news, the company announced it would close or curtail more capacity in the U.S. Citing a 30% drop in regional aluminum prices, the company said it would permanently close its 269,000-metric-ton-per-year (mt/y) Warrick Operations smelter in Evansville, Indiana, by the end of the first quarter of 2016. By the end of the second quarter, the company plans to reduce alumina production by 1 million mt/y, which includes curtailing the remaining 810,000 mt/y of refining capacity at its Point Comfort operations in Texas.
The rolling mill and power plant at Warrick Operations will continue to operate.
Including this most recent announcement, Alcoa will have curtailed or closed 812,000 mt/y of smelting capacity and 3.3 million mt/y of refining capacity since its announced review in March 2015 of 500,000 mt/y of smelting capacity and 2.8 million mt/y of refining capacity. The company is forecasting an improvement in supply-demand balances in both the alumina and aluminum markets for 2016.
