Firms Asked Not to Restart Northwest Plants
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Alcoa Inc. and other aluminum makers were asked by the Bonneville Power Administration to abstain from restarting plants in the U.S. Northwest for more than two years because of a power shortage there that may quadruple rates.
Bonneville Power, a U.S. government agency that sells hydroelectric power in the region, wants the companies to wait until October 2003 to restart production, Bonneville Administrator Steve Wright said.
The 10 aluminum plants, or smelters, in Washington, Oregon and surrounding states can make 1.6 million metric tons of aluminum a year.
Aluminum companies have curtailed 1 million metric tons of annual production in the Northwest over the last year because of high electricity rates spurred by cool weather, the California energy crisis and low water levels in hydroelectric dams. Bonneville’s rates would increase because it would have to buy electricity on the open market that it can’t supply from the dams.
Alcoa, the No. 1 aluminum maker, and Kaiser Aluminum Corp., No. 2, declined to comment.
Shares of Alcoa, based in Pittsburgh, rose $1.10 to $37.50. Houston-based Kaiser fell 19 cents to $3.35.
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