Aluminium producer Rusal transfers its can division Rostar to En+

Rusal has transferred its cans division, Rostar, to En+ as part of the signed merger agreement between Rusal, Sual and the alumina assets of Swiss trading group Glencore, the Russian aluminium producer said Monday.
    
En+ manages the aluminium and power assets of Basic Element,
    
Rostar's can facilities, Rostar Vsevolozhsk and Rostar Dmitrov, are located in the city of Dmitrov in the Moscow region and in Vsevolozhsk in the Leningrad region.
    
The two enterprises have a combined production capacity of 3 billion 0.33 liter and 0.5 liter cans and 3 billion ends/year. The Rostar-Vsevolozhsk aluminium can plant has an output capacity of 1.7 billion 0.5 liter cans per year. In 2006, Rostar-Vsevolozhsk produced 33,500 mt of cans and ends, an 18% increase compared to 2005, Rusal said in a statement.
    
The cans division of En+ will be headed by Andrey Donets, previously the director of Rusal's cans division.
    
"As part of En+ the division will continue to build up its cans production capacity and implement investment projects aimed at the developing the cans market," Rusal said. "It will also expand of the variety of its products and extend its long-term partnerships with clients."
    
The proposed acquisition of Glencore's and Sual's aluminium assets by En+, which last week received the green light from the European Commission, will result in the creation of UC Rusal, an intermediate holding company between En+ and its current subsidiary Rusal, which would take over the assets of Glencore and Sual.

The company will account for around 12.5% of global aluminium and 16% of global alumina production, respectively, according to Rusal figures. The annual volume of production will be around 4 million mt of aluminium and 11 million mt of alumina.