Norðurál – Century Aluminum Company has successfully achieved ASI Performance Certification demonstrating its commitment to environmental, social and governance performance. The certification covers their production of aluminium and aluminium ingots at Grundartangi in Iceland. 

Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) today announced that Norðurál – Century Aluminum Company has been successfully certified against ASI’s Performance Standard for responsible production, sourcing and stewardship of aluminium. The plant’s operations comprise an aluminium smelter and casthouse that use hydroelectric and geothermal energy.

The ASI Certification program was developed through an extensive multi-stakeholder consultation process and is the only comprehensive voluntary sustainability standard initiative for the aluminium value chain. The ASI Performance Standard defines environmental, social and governance principles and criteria, with the aim to address sustainability issues in the aluminium value chain. It sets out 59 criteria under the three sustainability pillars of Governance, Environment and Social, which address key issues such as biodiversity, Indigenous Peoples rights, and greenhouse gas emissions. The independent, third-party audit of the Norðurál facility was carried out by DNV GL.

Fiona Solomon, Chief Executive Officer at ASI said “We warmly congratulate Norðurál – Century Aluminum Company on their ASI Certification, the first in Iceland and the first drawing on geothermal power.  A focus on sustainability is essential throughout the aluminium value chain, and aluminium smelting and casthouses are a critical supply chain

activity.  We thank them for their commitment to ASI and look forward to their continued participation in our initiative.”

Gunnar Guðlaugsson, CEO of Norðurál “We are very proud to receive the ASI Performance standard certification. It demonstrates our commitment to operate in a sustainable manner, focus on continuous improvements and responds to a strong request for a responsible aluminum production where the goal is to minimize the environmental impact.”

ASI Certification process

ASI’s Standards apply throughout the supply chain, from mining through to downstream sectors that use aluminium in their products.  All current ASI members in the ‘Production and Transformation’ and ‘Industrial Users’ classes will be working towards their own ASI certifications in the coming two years.  ASI Members are listed at https://aluminium-stewardship.org/about-asi/current-members/

ASI’s custom-built online assurance platform, elementAl underpins the entire certification workflow for both the ASI Performance Standard and Chain of Custody Standard. First, elementAl’s user-oriented interface and workflows support the prospective company during the initial self-assessment phase and data is protected by a secure firewall. With a click, the company can make their relevant elementAl information accessible to their chosen auditor.  Auditors use elementAl to support audit planning, on-site verification and reporting.  ASI reviews submitted audit reports for conformity with ASI’s assurance procedures as a final control, before the certification approval and certificate(s) are issued. Full ASI certification is valid for three years, usually with a surveillance audit at approximately 18 months.

About ASI

The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) is a global, multi-stakeholder, non-profit standards setting and certification organisation. It works toward responsible production, sourcing and stewardship of aluminium following an entire value chain approach. To this end, ASI launched its Performance Standard and Chain of Custody Standard in December 2017.

ASI’s 100+ members include leading civil society organisations, companies with activities in bauxite mining, alumina refining, aluminium smelting, semi-fabrication, product and component manufacturing, as well as consumer and commercial goods, including the automotive industry, construction and packaging, as well as industry associations and other supporters.