Aleris

Aleris Corporation

Company type	Private
Industry	Aluminum manufacturing
Founded	2004
Fate	Acquired by Novelis Inc.
Headquarters	Beachwood, Ohio , United States
Number of employees	5,000 (2015)
Parent	Novelis Inc. (since 2020)

Aleris Corporation (also known as Aleris Inc. or Aleris International Inc.) was a U.S.-based manufacturer specializing in aluminum rolled products, with its headquarters located in Beachwood, Ohio. Around 2015, the company employed approximately 5,000 individuals worldwide.

On April 15, 2020, Aleris was purchased by Novelis Inc., a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries, for $2.8 billion. This acquisition broadened Hindalco's international footprint, positioning it among the top aluminum producers globally and allowing Novelis to penetrate the premium aerospace market segment.

Corporate affairs

Aleris operated as an aluminum rolled products manufacturer, with its main office situated in Beachwood, Ohio, near Cleveland. By mid-2015, this privately owned enterprise had a workforce of about 5,000 employees globally, including roughly 200 staff members at its manufacturing plant in Uhrichsville, Ohio. The company's ownership included private equity firms such as Apollo Global and Oaktree Capital Management. Steve Demetriou initially held the roles of chairman and CEO, followed by Sean Stack taking over in mid-2015; Scott Graves served as the non-executive chairman.

History

Established in 2004 through the merger of companies specializing in aluminum recycling and rolled products, Aleris functioned as a portfolio company under Texas Pacific Group and expanded its operations through acquisitions. A significant acquisition was the purchase of Corus Group’s aluminum extrusion and rolling divisions for approximately $894 million in 2006, followed by the acquisition of Wabash Alloys in 2007. After acquiring Corus’s assets, Aleris employed around 8,800 personnel across more than 40 manufacturing facilities worldwide.

In 2009, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Aleris for violations of the Clean Air Act; the company resolved the matter by paying a $4.6 million penalty and committing $4.2 million toward pollution control measures. The financial downturn caused by the 2008 crisis resulted in a 40% decrease in production and led Aleris to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2009. In 2010, Apollo, Oaktree Capital, and Sankaty Advisors acquired the company, enabling financial recovery and debt reduction.

During the early 2010s, Aleris invested in expanding its global manufacturing footprint, including establishing a new aerospace plate mill in China, implementing a $70 million upgrade at its Duffel, Belgium facility in 2013, and enhancing operations in Ashville, Ohio in 2014. In 2014, Aleris acquired Nichols Aluminum for $110 million in cash, adding production sites in Iowa, Alabama, and Illinois; later that year, it closed the Decatur plant to streamline operations. By late 2014, Aleris maintained over 40 facilities across North America, Europe, and Asia.

In 2015, the company concentrated on divesting its extrusion and recycling divisions to generate approximately $600 million in capital while reducing its workforce to about 5,000 employees. Plans for an initial public offering were abandoned within that year. Aleris was recognized as a leading supplier of aluminum sheets to U.S. residential construction and semi-trailer markets and expanded production capacity to meet increasing automotive industry demand for aluminum over steel. In 2017, it inaugurated a new aluminum body sheet plant located in Lewisport, Kentucky.

In August 2016, Zhongwang USA—a subsidiary of China Zhongwang—entered into an agreement to acquire Aleris for $2.3 billion; however, due to regulatory uncertainties, this transaction was terminated in November 2017. Afterwards, Hindalco Industries submitted a bid valued at $2.5 billion by late 2017; concurrently, Vedanta Resources also expressed interest in acquiring the company.

Aleris secured long-term aluminum supply agreements with Bombardier Inc. in 2017 and Boeing in 2018, strengthening its position within the industry. Ranked #690 on the 2019 edition of the Fortune 1000, Aleris earned Airbus’s accredited supplier award for exceptional quality performance consecutively by March 2019.

On April 15, 2020, Novelis Inc., a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries, completed its acquisition of Aleris for $2.8 billion—expanding Hindalco’s global presence and enabling Novelis to enter the premium aerospace aluminum market segment.

Metals

Aleris manufactures a range of aluminum alloys, such as AA7022-T651, which belongs to the 7000 series and is composed of aluminum combined with silicon, iron, copper, manganese, magnesium, chromium, zinc, titanium, and zirconium. The company's Koblenz plant, previously known as Corus Aluminium Walzprodukte GmbH, produces the AA5059-H131 alloy along with aluminum-magnesium-lithium alloys ranging from 1.3 to 6.3 millimeters in thickness, primarily utilized in aerospace structural applications.