Novelis electric pusher furnace cuts emissions 4,500 tonnes CO2 per year at Swiss plant

Novelis has started operating its first electric pusher furnace at its Sierre plant in Switzerland, replacing a natural gas fired system. The furnace heats aluminium ingots before rolling. By using electricity from the local Swiss power mix, the company expects to cut emissions by about 4,500 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year and reduce energy consumption by roughly 25 percent compared to the old gas fired setup. The shift moves emissions from Scope 1 to Scope 2, but the net reduction is real because the Swiss grid has low carbon intensity. The project came out of the Net Zero Lab Valais initiative, launched in 2022 with partners OIKEN, HES SO Valais Wallis, and EPFL. Novelis is also studying extending Sierre's district heating system to cover 20 to 30 percent of the city's total energy needs. This is a concrete example of how industrial heat electrification can cut emissions at the plant level. The furnace is one step in Novelis's broader 3x30 decarbonisation strategy, which aims for carbon neutral operations. For anyone tracking industrial decarbonization or electrification of heat, this is worth a look.