Norsk Hydro ASA Business Report FY ended Dec. 2014
Financial Overview |
(in million NOK) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2013 | Rate of change (%) | Factors | |
| Net Sales | 77,907 | 64,877 | 20.1 | - |
| Net Income | 1,228 | (839) | - | - |
| Net Sales by segment | ||||
| -Primary Metal | 6,397 | 3,866 | 65.5 | |
| -Rolled Products | 21,345 | 20,286 | 5.2 | |
Restructuring
Norway, Taking over of Aluminum smelter factory
-The Company and Rio Tinto Alcan (RTA) have closed the deal for the Company to take over RTA's shares in the aluminum smelter Sor-Norge Aluminium AS (Soral) in Husnes, Norway. With the deal completed, Soral's new plant name will be Hydro Husnes, and the plant has become Hydro's fifth fully owned aluminum smelter in Norway. With a workforce of 230 employees, Hydro Husnes has an annual production capacity of about 180,000 tons of primary aluminum. The plant, which has been operated as a stand-alone unit, idled one of its two production lines in 2009, and is currently producing around 90,000 tons of primary aluminum per year. (From a press release on November 3, 2014)
Australia, Closing factory
-The Company has decided to permanently close its Kurri Kurri aluminum plant in Australia. Production at the plant ceased in 2012. (From a press release on May 8, 2014)
R&D Expenditure |
(in million NOK) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2013 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2012 | |
| Overall | 277 | 216 | 247 |
-For FY ended Dec. 2014, the increase of R&D expenditure is mainly due to increased R&D related to preparation for the Karmoy Technology Pilot as well as developing aluminium solutions with improved properties and environmental benefits.
R&D Facilities
-The Company's primary research and development centers are located in the following locations:
- Ardal, Norway: Primary aluminum technology
- Sunndal, Norway: Alloys and casting
- Bonn, Germany: Rolled products
*R&D activity of Extruded Products is conducted by the 50/50 joint venture Sapa AS's research center.
*Bauxite & Alumina's research center is under establishment at Alumina do Norte do Brasil S.A. (Alunorte) in Barcarena, Para, Brazil.
Capital Expenditure |
(in million NOK) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2013 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2012 | |
| Overall | 3,294 | 2,867 | N/A |
Investment in Norway
-The Company announced that Enova, a public enterprise which supports new energy and climate-related technology development, has decided to contribute NOK 1.5 billion (EUR 184.5 million) toward the Company's full scale next-generation aluminum electrolysis pilot project at Karmoy in Norway. The pilot plant is planned to have a capacity of 70,000 tons of aluminum per year, and could begin production in 2017, at the earliest. The project is projected to cost NOK 3.6 billion (EUR 442.7 million), of which NOK 1.5 billion comes as support from Enova. The Company's technology center in Ardal, Norway is developing new and more energy-efficient electrolysis cell technology that the Company hopes to test in the pilot plant. (From a press release on June 13, 2014)
-The Company has decided to invest in new casting technology for its sheet ingot casthouses in Hoyanger and Ardal, Norway. With the NOK 80 million (approximately EUR 9.6 million) investment in casting tables with Adjustable Flexible Moulds (AFM), and new liquid distribution systems, the Company strengthens its position as a supplier of advanced sheet ingot. Implementation of the AFM casting technology will start during first half of 2015, and the project is expected to complete by first quarter 2016. (From a press release on June 24, 2014)
Investment Outside Norway
-The Company announced that it has started construction of a new automotive production line for lightweight car body sheet at its plant in Grevenbroich, Germany. The EUR 130 million investment will boost the Company's annual capacity for aluminum car body sheet from 50,000 tones today to 200,000 tones. These sheets are used for lighｔweight roofs, side panels, doors, or motorhoods.The new car body sheet production line in Grevenbroich is expected to start operations in the second half of 2016. The new production line will employ around 25 people. (From a press release on January 6, 2015)