How Global Aluminium Industry can cut 77% Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2050, explains IAI

The global aluminium industry must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 77 per cent before 2050, largely by shifting to green electricity, in an attempt to meet climate change goals, said the International Aluminium Institute on Tuesday, March 16.

“The challenge for us and for many sectors is reducing those emissions while growing production to meet demand,” said Chris Bayliss, IAI deputy secretary general.

Chris Bayliss explained that demand for aluminium would likely expand by 80 per cent to around 180 million tonnes of semi-fabricated products by 2050, driven by the need to cut emissions in industrial sectors such as electric vehicles. But meanwhile, aluminium sector must find ways to reduce CO2 emissions from the current levels of 1.1 billion tonnes to 250 million tonnes, said Bayliss. Else, the gas emissions will grow to 1.6 billion (approx.) by 2050.

Bayliss pointed out that a large amount of emissions come from China, the world’s biggest aluminium producer and a large user of coal to generate power.

However, producers that make green aluminium with hydropower must also make an attempt to reduce emissions to meet global climate change goals, Bayliss added. For instance, recycling aluminium causes scant emissions, so finding ways to collect the 7 million tonnes of metal that is not currently recycled is one of the strategies.

Electricity decarbonisation could be another way as more than 60 per cent of the gas emissions from aluminium are from the production of electricity consumed during the smelting process. So, decarbonised power generation and deployment of carbon capture utilisation and storage may result in almost zero emission by 2050.

Emissions from fuel combustion make up 15 per cent of the industry's emissions. So, electrification or fuel switching to green hydrogen and CCUS could be another most credible pathway.