Aughinish smelter faces new uncertainty as Biden mulls sanctions against owner Rusal

Aughinish has so far escaped getting tied up in US sanctions on Russian companies over the war in Ukraine

The Aughinish Alumina Refinery on the Shannon Estuary employs around 500 people at the Co. Limerick site and is involved in one of the stages in the international process of turning mined bauxite into alumina which is then made into a myriad of aluminium products. File picture

The future of Aughinish has been thrown back into doubt on a report the White House is mulling potential sanctions on Russian companies dealing in aluminium, including the giant Rusal International which ultimately owns the huge smelter in the Shannon Estuary.

Aughinish has so far escaped getting tied up in US sanctions on Russian companies over the Ukraine war despite its ultimate ownership by Moscow-based international metals firm Rusal because aluminium is used widely in the manufacture of cars and buildings around the world.