CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - October 23, 2014) - Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ: CENX) announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Alcoa's 50.3% stake in the Mt. Holly aluminum smelter. Mt. Holly, located in Berkeley County, South Carolina, employs approximately 600 people and has an annual production capacity of 229,000 metric tons of primary aluminum. Following the closing of the transaction, Century will own 100% of Mt. Holly.
"We are pleased to welcome the Mt. Holly team to the Century family," commented Michael Bless, President and CEO. "We are obviously familiar with this excellent plant due to our long affiliation, and are excited about the opportunity to assume full ownership. We know that Mt. Holly's employees share our core values of safety, product quality and customer service. This transaction furthers our intent to increase our North American hot metal capacity and improve the value-added content of our product mix, including continuing to supply aluminum to the automotive, aerospace and other key industries throughout South Carolina and the US.
"We believe that Mt. Holly is globally competitive in every area except its cost of power and this transaction reflects our continuing confidence in domestic aluminum production," continued Mr. Bless. "Mt. Holly's future is directly tied to our ability to obtain the power needed to make the plant competitive in the global market and we will work aggressively toward a solution that benefits everyone. During our time as a minority partner in the Mt. Holly smelter, we have grown to appreciate South Carolina as a pro-business, pro-jobs state with excellent leadership in business and government that understands the need to be competitive in the global economy," he said. "We look forward to working with the community and other key constituencies in South Carolina to ensure a long and productive future for Mt. Holly and to continue to give South Carolina a foothold in the international aluminum industry."
Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, Century will acquire Alumax of South Carolina, a subsidiary of Alcoa and owner of Alcoa's 50.3% interest in Mt. Holly, for $67.5 million in cash less certain amounts owed by Alumax to Mt. Holly and subject to working capital and other similar adjustments. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2014 and is subject to customary closing conditions.
About Century Aluminum
Century Aluminum Company owns primary aluminum capacity in the United States and Iceland. Century's corporate offices are located in Chicago, IL. Visit www.centuryaluminum.com for more information.
Certified Advisors for the First North market of the OMX Nordic Exchange Iceland hf. for Global Depositary Receipts in Iceland:
Atli B. Gudmundsson, Senior Manager -- Corporate Finance, Landsbankinn hf.
Steingrimur Helgason, Director -- Corporate Finance, Landsbankinn hf.