Hydro lands $8.72M grant to plan zero-emission aluminium pilot
What's the deal? Norwegian aluminium producer HydroDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has received US$9.91M from state-owned EnovaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → to fund a feasibility study for the next phase of its HalZero technology. The grant covers design and planning of a possible industrial concept pilot in Grenland, Norway.
Why now? The award, announced October 19, follows Hydro's first production of aluminium using HalZero electrolysis at its Herøya test facility. Enova previously granted US$17M in 2023 to support that test site.
What's the endgame? HalZero converts alumina into aluminium chloride before electrolysis, keeping chlorine and carbon in closed loops to eliminate direct CO₂ emissions from primary aluminium production. Today's process, invented in 1886, emits roughly 1.5kg of CO₂ for every kilo of aluminium produced.
By the numbers: The grant ranks near the top for its category — above the 97th percentile among 863 all-time grant rounds for engineering and manufacturing equipment companies in Norway.
What could go wrong? The technology remains early-stage, and current testing still generates CO₂ emissions. The funding is not approval to build the industrial pilot; Hydro says further development and investment decisions are required before commercial deployment.
The signal: The grant is a meaningful de-risking step amid a broader race to decarbonise primary aluminium, where AlcoaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Rio TintoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s ELYSIS has already demonstrated an inert-anode cell at commercial scale. Continued Norwegian public backing shows support for the technology, but HalZero is not yet ready to compete commercially.
Read more: news.metal.com
Image credit: Trondheim byarkiv
