The aim of this project carried out for the Joint Research Centre of the European Union was to perform an in-depth analysis of the technological innovation that could take place in the aluminium sector in the EU and Iceland and a quantification of their impact on the sector’s energy efficiency, GHG emissions profile and cost-competitiveness up to 2050. Detailed data on available innovations in the European aluminium industry were collected as well as their costs and benefits to be expected. In addition, a comprehensive database with publicly available data on the European aluminium industry was established in order to assess potential effects of innovations on a plant-by-plant basis in a model that was specifically built for this project. The model assesses in detail the likely implementation of new technologies per plant until 2050. It was found that, for three scenarios examined, in particular an increase in secondary production (‘recycling’), rather than changes in electricity or CO2 prices, can influence emissions in a positive way.

The report has been published in the JRC website.

For more information please contact Stephan Slingerland.