Aluminum production continues at Noranda's New Madrid plant following damage to casthouse

Noranda Aluminum Holding Corporation announced today that molten aluminum production at its New Madrid, Missouri aluminum plant is continuing at the same level as before an explosion yesterday in that facility's casthouse.

Although the incident affected the company's production of extrusion billet, the company is redirecting that portion of the plant's molten aluminum output to other saleable products such as redraw rod and aluminum ingot.

"We are thankful that no serious injuries occurred as a result of yesterday's incident," said Layle K. "Kip" Smith, Noranda's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are investigating the incident's cause and assessing the damage to the casthouse. Once that assessment is complete we will determine the necessary steps and timeline for restoring our extrusion billet production. Other than the casthouse, which is a discrete, single unit part of the facility, the plant is operating at the same level as before yesterday's incident."

The incident, which occurred at approximately 12:30 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, August 4, is being investigated as a molten metal explosion. Noranda's on-site emergency action team, joined by local emergency response units, responded quickly to secure the area and provide necessary medical attention. Injuries were limited to non-critical abrasions, dust irritation, and smoke inhalation.

No estimates are available at this time regarding the financial impact of the incident. Noranda expects that some or all of the financial impact will be mitigated by property and business interruption insurance.