Norsk Hydro’s CEO has described its acquisition of the outstanding half share of aluminium pole manufacturer Sapa as its ‘defining moment’ of 2017.
Sapa was formed in 2013 as a 50/50 joint venture between Norwegian firms Orkla and Hydro and subsequently became a successful aluminium solutions provider and the world's largest extrusion company.
In the autumn Hydro completed the acquisition of Orkla’s 50% share of Sapa, a move it described as ‘making Hydro a leading force in the global aluminium industry [and] the only global company in the aluminium industry that is fully integrated across the value chain and markets’.
Sapa became Hydro’s new Extruded Solutions business area, with 22,400 employees and a presence in around 40 countries.
In his letter to shareholders in the firm’s 2017 annual report, president and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg wrote: ‘Among multiple highlights in 2017, the addition to the family was a defining moment.
‘With Extruded Solutions onboard, expanding our customer interfaces and sharpening our engineering spirit, Hydro’s aluminium operations now range from mining to recycling, and every step in between, making Hydro the truly global 360° aluminium company. Going forward together with 35,000 skillful and dedicated colleagues at 150 locations in 40 countries is inspiring.
‘As a complete aluminium family we can put our metal and material to good use in even more applications, light-weighting and energizing the world through smart solutions. We are getting closer to the end-users.
'We are more often getting into the room with the product designers. We can learn from the agility of our new family members. And our innovators and entrepreneurs have a momentum to explore and take advantage of all the undiscovered opportunities in the space between extruded and rolled aluminium.’
