Rio Tinto’s ISAL smelter in Iceland has been certified by the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) for meeting the highest internationally recognised standards for responsible aluminium production.
The ISAL smelter commenced operations in 1969. It now produces approximately 184,000 tonnes of aluminium per year and employs around 500 workers on-site. The smelter recently achieved ASI Performance Standard certification with provisional status, following an independent, third party ‘desk top’ audit by ERM CVS. An on-site audit is expected to be completed following the easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Rio Tinto was the first company to offer ASI Aluminium in 2018. The company offers ASI Aluminium through eight other smelters across its global supply chain, with Performance Standard and Chain of Custody certifications spanning its alumina refinery, aluminium smelters and casthouses in Canada, and the Gove, Amrun and Weipa bauxite mines, Yarwun alumina refinery, and the Bell Bay and NZAS aluminium smelters in Australia and New Zealand.
Rio Tinto Chief Commercial Officer, Alf Barrios, said: “Expanding our global offering of independently certified, responsibly produced aluminium to include ISAL aligns with our aim to have consistently high ESG credentials across Rio Tinto.”
“This certification can enhance the value ISAL’s high-quality billet delivers for customers in European markets, where there is a growing demand for sustainable products across sectors like construction and automotive,” Mr Barrios said.
“We look forward to continuing our partnership with ASI, as we work with customers to offer sustainable products that help them meet consumer expectations.”
ASI is a global, multi-stakeholder, non-profit standards-setting and certification organisation. It works toward responsible production, sourcing and stewardship of aluminium following an entire value chain approach. ASI launched its Performance Standard and Chain of Custody Standard in December 2017.
ASI Chief Executive Officer, Fiona Solomon, said Rio Tinto’s ongoing commitment to ASI’s mission has played a valuable role in the widespread adoption of the standards “across the industry and into downstream aluminium use sectors such as automotive, construction and packaging”.