Century Aluminum in 2024: Steady net sales, increased net income and 5-year high production signal key turning point

Century Aluminum Company, a global primary aluminium producer with operations in the United States and Iceland, has posted about its booming year ended December 31, 2024, with a new 5-year high record production at Sebree, steady net sales, and increased net income amid surging energy costs and raw material prices.

Image source: Century Aluminum

On February 20, 2025, the company released its financial and operational results attributing all the gains to a nonrecurring benefit from a force majeure settlement, recovery from Hurricane Beryl, improved realised metal prices, and flattering Inflation Reduction Act 45X, which was an Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit to promote US production of critical minerals, including primary aluminium. For the entire year, Century reported its net sales amounted to 2.22 billion compared to 2.19 billion in 2023. To the annual net sales of 2024, Q4 contributed 28.42 per cent, having net sales of $631 million versus $539 million in Q3.

In tandem with the increased net sales, net income attributable to Century stockholders rose from $43.1 million in 2023 to $339.4 million in 2024, following a slight sequential growth in Q4 from $47.3 million to $47.7 million – offset by $0.7 million of net exceptional items, in particular $5.8 million of unrealised losses on forward derivative contracts (net of tax), more than offset by $5.3 million in share-based compensation costs and $2.0 million of lower cost or net realisable value inventory adjustment (net of tax). Therefore, Century's adjusted net income in Q4 was $45.9 million, down by 23.5 per cent from $60 million. However, the annual adjusted net income recorded a surge from $30.7 million to $104 million.

Adjusted EBITDA attributable to stakeholders totalled $82.4 million in Q4 2023 versus $103.7 million in the previous quarter. Annual EBITDA was $245.2 million, up by 104 per cent from $120 million, driven by favourable LME prices and regional price premiums. In 2024, the average market spot price of aluminium ingots in the United States was $130 per pound, up by 3.26 per cent from $125.9 per pound. At the end of the year, the aluminium premium duty paid by US Midwest hit $518.98 after climbing up by 16.25 per cent Y-oY from $446.44.