Rusal To Invest $20 Mln In Cathode Production In China

MOSCOW (Dow Jones)-United Co. Rusal, the world’s largest producer of aluminum and alumina, Thursday said it plans to invest $20 million in a newly acquired cathode plant in China.

Rusal said it plans to increase the plant’s annual capacity to 20,900 metric tons by 2010 from 9,300 tons now. The company didn’t say how much it paid for the plant, which is located in Baoguan, 600 kilometers from Beijing.

Cathode blocks, are a key component of the cells which aluminum producers use for electrolysis.

Chinese cathode plants currently provide 30% of the Rusal’s total requirements for its Siberian smelters.