Who We Are & What We Do
We are Brazil's largest primary aluminum producer, supplying domestic and foreign markets with high-purity aluminum ingots since 1985. Hydro is our majority shareholder, with 51% of the company's shares, while NAAC (Nippon Amazon Aluminium Co. Ltd.) holds the remaining 49%. NAAC is a consortium formed by a Japanese government agency, commercial companies, consumers and manufacturers of aluminium products.
We are headquartered in Barcarena, a city in the Amazon-enclosing region of the state of Pará (northern Brazil). We help create 3,300 jobs, including direct and indirect positions, and around 65% of our production is geared towards supplying the Brazilian market.
Albras is part of Hydro's aluminum production chain, which begins with the mining of bauxite in Paragominas (also a city in Pará). The ore is then crushed, washed and compressed until it becomes a pulp, which is then transported through a 244-kilometer pipeline to the Hydro Alunorte refinery in Barcarena. There, the bauxite is refined into alumina, one of the raw materials used to produce aluminum. Then, after undergoing a number of heating and filtering processes, the alumina becomes a white, dry powder, visually similar to refined sugar.
It is this alumina that reaches Albras. Once here, it undergoes an electrolytic melting process called Hall-Héroult Electrolysis, which uses electricity and carbon in special furnaces known as electrolytic vats to break down the alumina. The electrolysis produces aluminum in liquid form at a temperature of around 960 ºC (1,760 ºF), which is then removed from the furnaces in batches and placed in shaping mills so it solidifies as ingots. The Albras industrial park occupies an area of about 1.874.784,2 m². In addition to the three core production areas (called Carbon, Reduction and Foundry), the complex also features admin office buildings, a warehouse, a gas station, a medical clinic, a restaurant, a lookout and a yard.
At the Carbon plant, the company runs a constant production line for anode, a major raw material used in the electrolytic vats. The input for production of anode is a block of carbon, which is the ‘positive’ side of the electrolysis reaction. Anode factories prepare the block with coke and tar, and then add rods that attach to the vats. Our annual anode production is about 265 thousand tons per year. Albras’ anode is a high-quality product, which has important ramifications for the cost of producing the metal and reduces CO₂ emissions.
The second stage of production takes place in the Reduction area, where the electrolytic vats are located. Albras operates with four production lines, each with 240 vats totaling 960 vats and operating at a temperature of approximately 960°C. In the electrolytic tanks, the main raw materials; carbon anodes, alumina and the electrolyte are subjected to the passage of an electric current for the electrolysis reaction to occur. Once formed, the liquid aluminum settles at the bottom of the tanks and is removed through containers called crucibles that transport the still liquid metal to the last stage of the process, the casting.
Once at the Foundry, the liquid metal is placed in casting furnaces to keep it warm until it is placed in the ingot molds. The ingot molds mold the 22.5-kilo (50-lb) ingots and the conveyor belts direct them to the stack assembly sector, where robots assemble an average of 1,000 stacks per day, each weighing an average of one ton.
The ingot stacks are stored in a yard and later sent for transportation, either by river (through the Port of Vila do Conde) or road.
Albras' History at a Glance
Built in 1978 as part of the Brazilian government’s drive to encourage major projects in the Amazon, the Albras aluminum factory was one of several successful projects developed under a partnership between Brazil and Japan. Japan had the production technology, the will to encourage development of the Amazon and the interest in securing the supply of primary aluminum for its industries. Brazil was interested in supporting construction of the hydroelectric power plant of Tucuruí (a town in Pará state) as well as promoting the sustainable occupation of the region.
As the first major industry in Pará, the project faced many obstacles and struggles. Eventually, however, the dedication of many professionals would prevail, ultimately conquering the challenge of setting up an aluminum plant in the middle of the Brazilian Amazon. The main forces driving momentum for the project were strong government interest, the bauxite reserves discovered in Pará and the strategic location of the Port of Vila do Conde. After its long “gestation” period, the plant finally started production in 1985, and has been in operation ever since.
Timeline
Renewable Energy
Albras has formed a Join Venture with Hydro Rein and Atlas Renewable Energy to develop a solar energy project in Brazil: the Boa Sorte Solar Power Plant, in the state of Minas Gerais. The solar farm is set to receive total investments of US$ 320 million and expected to generate 438 MW of electricity.
The company is also an investor in the Vista Alegre solar farm, located in Janaúba (state of Minas Gerais), with installed capacity of 902 MWp (equivalent to 768 MWac). The complex is expected to produce an average 200 MW (2 TWh) per year, or the equivalent of all energy consumed by over three million people. In total, the plant would avoid the emission of 2.4 million tons of CO₂ over the plant’s 20 years of operation.
In addition to building and developing the solar farm itself, Albras has also signed an annual Power Purchase Agreement ensuring the supply of 815 GWh of renewable energy per year from the plant between 2025 and 2044.
Residue disposal
Albras, in partnership with the Federal University of Pará (UFPA), has developed a technique for the disposal of Spent Vat Coating Waste (called RGC in Portuguese), one of the main waste materials in the aluminum production process. This material is sent to the cement industry, where it is used as a raw material in cement manufacturing.
In 2023, Albras completely eliminated the stored RGC inventory at its plant, maintaining only the monthly volume generated since then.
This initiative highlights Albras’ commitment to seeking sustainable waste disposal alternatives, adding value and aligning with environmentally responsible practices. Additionally, it reinforces the company’s dedication to following industry best practices, being one of the initiatives aimed at maintaining the Zero Waste to Landfill certification.
Learn more!
A Direct Channel with our external audiences
Together with Hydro, Albras has developed Canal Direto (“Direct Line”), our platform for unmediated communication with society. People can use the platform to send suggestions, questions, complaints or compliments about issues related to the companies and their operations, including anonymously if they so prefer.
Anyone, anywhere who wants to get in touch and establish a dialog with Albras can use the service. There are three ways to access Canal Direto: via hydro.com/canaldireto, toll-free at 0800 721 0794 (from a Brazilian number) or via e-mail at canaldireto@hydro.com. The service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- How to get to Albras
Private and public transportation is available by road and river.
Albras - Alumínio Brasileiro SA
Rod. Transaluminio - Murucupi,
Barbacena - PA, 68445-000
By road:
1. Buses and vans depart daily from the Belém Bus Terminal. Schedules are defined by the bus companies. Arrival is at the Vila dos Cabanos bus station. Estimated travel time is 2.5-3 hours
2. Rental cars are also available. Albras can be reached via the “Alça Viária” road or by ferry.
By river
1. Pedestrians can reach the company by speedboat, leaving from Ver-o-Peso in Belém and arriving at the Port of São Francisco, where buses, motorcycles, taxis and ride-sharing are available for the rest of the journey. Estimated travel time: one hour by river, 50 minutes by road.
2. Pedestrians can reach the company by speedboat, leaving from Ver-o-Peso in Belém and arriving at the Port of São Francisco, where buses, motorcycles, taxis and ride-sharing are available for the rest of the journey. Estimated travel time: one hour by river + 50 minutes by road.
3. Pedestrians and drivers can use the ferry, which departs from the Port of Arapari in Belém and arrives at the same port in the city of Arapari. After the ferry trip, a xx-kilometer stretch must then be traveled by car or motorcycle. Estimated travel time: 1h20min for the river section, then approximately 50 minutes for the road section.
