US' Jupiter to expand aluminum business into Europe with Aludium purchase

US-based aluminum alloy producer Jupiter Aluminum will expand its aluminum rolling operations into Europe after signing a definitive agreement to acquire Aludium from Atlas Holdings, the companies said April 17.

"Aludium's extended capabilities and experience represent an excellent opportunity to complement our existing operations and product offering in the market," JAC CEO Paul-Henri Chevalier said in the statement.

The sale is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023, but the companies are not disclosing the terms of the transaction, according to the statement.

Atlas, a Greenwich, Connecticut-based private investment and equity firm, formed Aludium in 2015. The business comprises aluminum sheet rolling assets in Spain and France that Atlas bought in 2015 from aluminum producer Alcoa.

Aludium operates three sites with a scrap recycling capacity of 200,000 mt/year, according to its website.

"After a successful ownership period, in which Aludium became an independently operated company and expanded its recycling activities as a key value driver of the business, now is the right time for the capable Aludium team to move forward with a new partner for their next stage of growth," Atlas Operating Partner Peter Bacon said in the statement. Bacon is also a member of Aludium's board of directors.

Hammond, Indiana-based JAC recycles aluminum scrap and produces mill finish and painted alloy aluminum rolled sheet coils. The company currently operates four facilities in the US and primarily supplies the building and construction markets, as well as service centers and government customers.

With the acquisition, JAC joins Europe's shifting aluminum rolling landscape that has looked to increasingly emphasize the use of scrap as a primary feedstock. For instance, In March, Germany-based aluminum producer and roller Speira completed its purchase of European aluminum and magnesium recycling operations from Real Alloy. The transaction bolsters Speira's aluminum rolling and recycling footprint in Europe as it moves forward with the closure of its primary aluminum smelting capacity at its Rheinwerk site in Neuss.

Atlas also sells copper wire asset

Atlas' sale of Aludium follows a separate plan to sell a majority ownership stake in International Wire Group Holdings to Olympus Partners, for which the signing of a definitive agreement was announced April 14.

Camden, New York-based IWG is the largest non-vertically integrated copper and copper-alloy wire products manufacturer in the US with additional operations in Europe, according to a statement. The company supplies the electricity, industrial, automotive, aerospace, data communications and other markets.

Atlas acquired IWG in April 2019 and will continue as an investor in the company after the transaction closes in Q2.