The certification means that Hydro’s Paragominas bauxite mine and Alunorte alumina refinery have been certified. The certification covers both the production sites as such, and the alumina from Alunorte originating from Paragominas (or other ASI certified plants).

This means that Hydro’s certifications are now in principal extended to cover the entire aluminium value chain, from mine to casthouse and onward to its extrusion and rolling business areas.

Important milestone

“The ASI certification of Paragominas bauxite mine and Alunorte alumina refinery is an important milestone in our commitment and efforts to produce aluminium raw materials according to the highest industry standards for responsibility and sustainability, and to deliver certified products to our customers and the rest of the aluminium value-chain,” says John Thuestad, Executive Vice-President of Bauxite & Alumina in Hydro.

To achieve ASI certification an independent third-party audit must verify that the plant operates according to defined standards related to governance, policy and management, transparency and reporting, environment and biodiversity, social issues and labor rights, to mention some – and the requirements are extensive. DNV GL carried out the audits of the bauxite and alumina operations.

“We are prepared to be held accountable for the way we operate, and these certifications add obligations to our ambition to not only maximize the benefits of aluminium in use, but also to minimize the impact of producing it. We are now one notable step closer toward our goal of going to market with products and solutions that are ASI certified throughout the entire value-chain,” says John Thuestad.

Strong commitment

“We congratulate Hydro on their strong commitment to ASI, demonstrated by the achievement of their 6th Performance Standard Certification and 2nd Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification covering a range of business units,” says Fiona Solomon, who is Chief Executive Officer at ASI, underlining that it contributes to making certified metal available in the market.

“Hydro has achieved yet another milestone by extending their Performance and CoC Standard certifications to the start of its value chain at the bauxite mine, becoming only the second vertically integrated ASI Member to do so. ASI’s Chain of Custody Standard is designed to drive implementation of responsible practices from end to end in the aluminium value chain. Certification against both ASI Standards creates a connection to metal production and sourcing, supporting market choice for responsibly produced aluminium,” Fiona Solomon says.

Certified metal

While the Performance Standard put demands on the operational standard at the plants, the ASI CoC Standard sets out requirements for the creation of a Chain of Custody for material that is produced and processed through the value chain into diverse downstream sectors.

The implementation of ASI’s CoC Standard links verified practices at successive steps of the supply chain – certified under the ASI Performance Standard – to the products produced by ASI Certified Entities.

Hydro’s CoC Certifications already include scrap re-melting and casthouse operations, and this new certification now enables Hydro to produce ASI certified aluminium from new material as well.

The ASI Certification program was developed through an extensive multi-stakeholder consultation process and is the only comprehensive voluntary sustainability standard initiative for the aluminium value chain.