Third smelter line on track to restart in March

MALAGA — The hiring’s done and training under way as 80 workers move toward a possible March start-up of Alcoa Wenatchee Works’ third potline, mothballed for more than a decade.

Early hires, on the job for three months and already trained, have begun making carbon anodes – essential components in the aluminum-making process — as a first step in firing up the third smelter line.

“The training has gone well, with many of the first-hired workers now getting full command of their new skills and duties,” Alcoa spokeswoman Sharon Kanareff said Thursday. “The longer they’re on the job — practice makes perfect — the sharper those skills will get.”

Jobs include a variety of potline tasks, including operating cranes and learning to make adjustments on the smelter pot, she said.

Local officials for Alcoa, the world’s largest aluminum company, announced Jan. 7 that the Wenatchee smelter would be one of three in the U.S. to restart idle production lines this year as worldwide demand for aluminum increases, particularly in aerospace industries and food and beverage products.

As yet, no firm start-up date for the smelter line has been set, said Kanareff, but the company is aiming for sometime in March. “Prep work is still under way, and its completion will determine when the line opens.”

The 435-employee Wenatchee Works has spent $1.5 million in preparation work to ensure the potline is operational by “spring flush” on the Columbia River, said plant manager Nik Winjum. That’s when massive amounts of snow runoff move down the river to produce a surge in power at the region’s hydroelectric dams.

The potline’s spring start is well ahead of the Nov. 1 activation date of a new contract with the Chelan County PUD for cheap power to operate the line. The new 17-year contract provides enough energy, said Winjum, to increase the smelter’s annual production by 42,000 metric tons. At its peak in the 1960s, the plant produced 210,000 tons annually.

After more than two months of planning, Alcoa and PUD officials are still in discussions to determine how to power the early start-up — where that electricity might come from and how much it’ll cost — prior to the new contract taking effect. The PUD is expected to manage the power delivery no matter where the electricity is generated, Winjum said.

The 80 new positions for the third line were filled from a hiring pool of 750 applicants. Additional jobs could be added once production on the line starts, said Kanareff, “but at this point, we’re not sure. We’ll continue to evaluate employment needs as this long process unfolds.”

Alcoa has estimated that the potline jobs will generate nearly $100,000 in wages and benefits per employee annually. According to a labor contract approved last year, hourly pay ranges from $16.75 for entry-level workers to $23.77 for employees in the highest job class. Wages vary depending on an individual’s seniority, worked overtime and other factors, Kanareff said.

（source from: wenatcheeworld.com）