Novelis Inc., a leading sustainable aluminium solutions provider and the world leader in aluminium rolling and recycling, has announced the construction of its first solar park at the company’s production site in Pieve Emanuele, Italy. 

Local authorities granted their final approval for building the more than 28,000 square meters large solar park, which is scheduled to start generating electricity by end of this year.

With this project, Novelis is investing $2.4 million in decarbonising its production in Pieve, further supporting the development of low-carbon, sustainable aluminium solutions for the European market.

The solar park’s annual production of around 4,000 MWh will enable the plant to switch a large portion of its energy sources from carbon-intensive to renewable ones while decreasing its reliance on external energy sources. 

The park will be connected to the Italian national grid, allowing for energy produced outside the plant’s operating hours to be used by surrounding communities.

“Investing in renewable energy generation is crucial to decarbonising our operations and meeting our sustainability goals,” said Emilio Braghi, Executive Vice President, Novelis Inc., and President, Novelis Europe. 

“Further increasing our capabilities to supply aluminium produced with a lower CO2 footprint will also enable us to help our customers reduce their scope 3 emissions and achieve their decarbonisation goals.”

Located in the south of Milan, Novelis’ Pieve plant is an ideal location to build a solar park as it has a large unoccupied area with high sun exposure.

“In addition to the importance of the solar park for Novelis, the project is also an investment in increasing renewable energy generation in the Lombardi region,” said Laura Basile, Plant Manager at Novelis Pieve. 

“I am very proud that our team is part of a company that is leading the way in decarbonising the aluminium industry while adding value to surrounding communities.”

Novelis has the target to reduce its carbon footprint by 30% by 2026, and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 or sooner. Besides its strong focus on energy efficiency initiatives and recycling, Novelis will continue to seek opportunities to decarbonise its operations by switching to renewable energy sources.