The Arctial aluminium smelter in northern Finland, backed by Rio Tinto, is targeting first hot metal production in the second half of 2029, contingent on a final investment decision being taken in 2027, the project’s chief commercial officer has said.
Maxime Vandersmissen outlined the timeline while speaking at the CRU World Aluminium Conference in London on Tuesday. The project is designed to produce 610,000 metric tonnes of aluminium per year, which would make it one of the largest new smelter developments in Europe in decades.
The Arctial project has attracted attention as Europe seeks to reduce its dependence on aluminium imports and rebuild domestic primary production capacity, which has contracted significantly over recent years due to high energy costs. Finland’s abundant renewable energy resources and competitive power pricing have positioned the country as one of the few viable locations on the continent for new large-scale smelting capacity.
