On the morning of October 10, Novelis, the global leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, hosted members of the community, customers and government officials to break ground on the expansion of its automotive aluminum manufacturing facility in Changzhou. The $180 million investment will double the facility's production capacity of heat-treated aluminum sheet by 100,000 metric tons in order to better meet the growing demand for automotive aluminum in Asia.

Mayor Ding Chun attended the groundbreaking ceremony and delivered a speech.

Ding said that in recent years, in accordance with the requirements of high-quality development, Changzhou has actively seized major opportunities such as the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration, promoted the development of ten major industrial chains such as new energy vehicles and automobile core components, and accelerated the progress of a modern industrial system with distinctive characteristics and outstanding advantages. After the completion of Novelis� expansion project, it will inject momentum into efforts to accelerate the development of the new energy automobile industry in Changzhou.

Novelis Inc. is the global leader in aluminum rolled products and the world's largest recycler of aluminum. The company operates in 10 countries, has approximately 11,000 employees and had $11.5 billion in revenue for its 2018 fiscal year. Novelis supplies premium aluminum sheet and foil products to transportation, packaging, construction, industrial and consumer electronics markets throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South America. Novelis is a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries Limited, an industry leader in aluminum and copper, and metals flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India.

Novelis' Changzhou plant is the company's first aluminum automotive sheet manufacturing facility in China. The wholly owned $100 million plant first began commissioning in 2014 with an annual capacity of 100,000 metric tons. Located in the heart of the Changzhou National Hi-Tech District, the plant provides customers in China and abroad with high-quality automotive sheet for use in lightweight vehicle structures and body panels with heat treatment and finishing capabilities.

This significant expansion provides Novelis with the additional capacity needed to increase its production of innovative aluminum solutions to enable automotive manufacturers to develop the next-generation of safer, stronger and lighter vehicles. The project is scheduled to be complete in 2020 in order to align with key customer's vehicle-launch plans.