Century Aluminum has reached a milestone increase in U.S. domestic manufacturing of primary aluminum with its recent plant expansion.
The expansion, which began last fall, officially finished today. With more than 150 new jobs, primarily in production, the Berkeley county plant is now operating at full capacity, with more than 650 employees.
The expansion of the Mt. Holly site alone increases the total domestic production of aluminum by 10%. A projected 230,000 tons of aluminum is expected to be produced at the site annually.
Tawn Earnest, director of global communications and PR for Century Aluminum, says it's important for the country to produce its own aluminum, as it is a critical metal for many industries.
"[With] what's happening all around the world, wars, their political strategizing [disrupts] the supply chain,” she said.
Earnest says the 10% increase in domestic production "reduces [reliance] on imported aluminum and shortens the supply chain for customers here in the United States." Aluminum is important for many consumer products, defense, and national security industries, "keeping the production close to home helps add resilience to the supply chain of this material."
For South Carolina, a manufacturing state, Earnest says this production has "ripple effects," because the plant producing raw material feeds into the supply chains of the companies in South Carolina's manufacturing sector.
Earnest says Century Aluminum is "leading the revitalization," right from the Lowcountry.
