China Nonferrous Metal Industry’s Foreign Engineering and Construction (NFC) said its Vietnamese smelter had produced its first batch of molten primary aluminium.
The landmark first metal output came 50 days ahead of the contractual milestone, with overall construction wrapping up three months ahead of the original timeline.
It said the 450,000 tonnes Dak Nong smelter, Vietnam was the country's first large scale modern electrolytic aluminium facility
Located in what was formerly Dak Nong Province, now part of Vietnam’s Lam Dong Province, the project navigated hurdles including cross-border logistics bottlenecks and monsoon-season construction conditions.
The on-site team integrated design, procurement, construction and commissioning workflows, and implemented closed-site, two-shift round-the-clock operations to maintain momentum.
Following a single-round energisation of all 112 reduction cells in Phase 1 on July 7, 16 cells across the smelter’s two potrooms entered stable preheating.
The full sequence from power-up, through cell baking, to first aluminium tap proceeded with zero operational disruptions.
Going forward, NFC will roll out preheating and start-up for the remaining reduction cells in a phased manner, gradually ramping up Phase 1’s 150,000-tonne annual capacity.
