Rio Tinto, Hydro partner on carbon capture technologies for aluminum smelters

The companies plan to invest approximately $45 million over five years to support their initiative.

Aluminum produced by Hydro.

Photo courtesy of Norsk Hydro ASA

Global mining and metals company Rio Tinto and aluminum producer Hydro are partnering to identify and evaluate available carbon capture technologies for future implementation in the aluminum electrolysis process.

The companies have signed a partnership agreement that provides for the sharing of certain information, results and costs covering specific research and development (R&D) activities from laboratory tests with external suppliers to larger, on-site pilots, with the aim of creating improved offerings of commercially viable carbon capture technologies from relevant suppliers.

RELATED: Hydro secures green bond funding | BlueScope, BHP and Rio Tinto select site for electric smelting furnace pilot plant

The partners expect to invest approximately $45 million over five years to support their initiative, with most of the work conducted at Rio Tinto’s facilities in Europe and Hydro’s facilities in Norway, where it is headquartered. Additionally, both companies say they will continue to pursue substantial decarbonization efforts independently.

According to the partners, anode consumption during the electrolysis process accounts for approximately three quarters of a smelter’s direct CO2 emissions. For several years, scientists from both companies have explored different carbon capture technologies as complementary solutions to help each meet their climate targets, along with the development and scale-up of carbon-free aluminum smelting technologies such as Hydro’s HalZero technology and Rio Tinto’s participation in the Elysis joint venture with Pittsburgh-based aluminum producer Alcoa.

Rio Tinto is committed to reaching net zero emissions from our operations by 2050, and we know that achieving our climate objectives will require a portfolio of solutions,” says Jakob Stausholm, CEO of Rio Tinto, which has headquarters in London and Melbourne, Australia. “By working in partnership with Hydro to assess certain carbon capture technologies for aluminum smelters, we are finding better ways to leverage our complementary networks and R&D capabilities to address the climate change challenge.”

The companies say capturing carbon from aluminum smelter flue gas, with CO2 concentrations around 1 percent (volume), requires adapting direct air capture technologies for higher concentrations or point source technologies for lower concentrations. In both cases, the companies say the current technology readiness level is low and requires “significant development efforts” to mature from laboratory to commercial scale.

Hydro is accelerating our ambitious roadmap to achieve net-zero aluminum production by 2050 or sooner, advancing solutions across every step of our value chain—from mine to metal,” Hydro President and CEO Eivind Kallevik says. “Carbon capture technologies are critical to decarbonizing existing smelters, and our partnership with Rio Tinto will amplify efforts to develop fit-for-purpose solutions that can accelerate the aluminum industry’s transition towards net-zero production.”