Century Aluminum

Century Aluminum is a US-based primary aluminium producer operating smelters in the United States and Iceland. The company is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and is publicly traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the ticker symbol CENX. Century Aluminum's operations include the Hawesville smelter in Kentucky, the Mt Holly facility in South Carolina, and the Grundartangi smelter in Iceland, which together provide significant production capacity for the North American and European markets. The company focuses on producing primary aluminium from alumina, serving customers in the transportation, construction, packaging and industrial sectors. Century Aluminum's business model is heavily dependent on electricity costs, as aluminium smelting is an energy-intensive process, making access to competitively priced power a critical factor in its operational strategy. The company has faced challenges related to volatile aluminium prices, energy costs and global competition, leading to periodic curtailments and restarts of production capacity. Century Aluminum was founded in 1995 and has grown through acquisitions and strategic partnerships to become one of the major aluminium producers serving Western markets. The company's Icelandic operations at Grundartangi benefit from access to renewable geothermal and hydroelectric power, providing a lower-carbon production profile compared to coal-powered smelters elsewhere.