Slovalco

The history of Slovalco began in the 1950s, when the first aluminium was produced at the factory in Žiar nad Hronom. In later years, the factory underwent extensive modernization, culminating in the 1990s with the opening of a completely new production hall that met strict safety and environmental standards.

Penta became a minority co-owner of Slovalco in 2002, when it bought ZSNP a.s. Today, it owns 44.7% of the aluminium plant. The majority owner is the Norwegian company Norsk Hydro, which is one of the global leaders in aluminium production.

In cooperation with Norsk Hydro, Slovalco has managed to become not only a major aluminium producer, but also one of the most environmentally friendly aluminium plants in the world.

Until recently, the plant employed 500 people. More than 2,500 other jobs were indirectly linked to them. Slovalco was also a significant employer in both Žiar nad Hronom and the Banská Bystrica region.

Slovalco has also been an important partner for the city of Žiar nad Hronom itself for a long time, where the factory’s financial donations made it possible to build a new hockey stadium and a municipal swimming pool. Penta also reclaimed a sludge field near the factory, which was a remnant of local production from the past and which represented one of the largest ecological threats in Central Europe. The reclamation process took almost 10 years and required an investment of €53 million. This amount represented the largest private investment in ecology in Slovakia. Penta received an ENVIRO OSCAR award for the reclamation in 2012.

Production of primary aluminium at the Slovalco plant was shut down in 2023, although the plant continues to recycle aluminium. Slovalco’s modern remelting furnace allows the recycling of up to 55,000 tons of aluminium per year, with a minimal carbon footprint and significantly lower energy consumption.