Russian plants gets $37 million

Alcoa today announced it will invest $37 million in its recently acquired Belaya Kalitva fabricating facility in

to improve heat-treated plate and sheet output for a variety of markets.

The investment is part of more than $80 million in capital and technology investments planned for the Belaya Kalitva and Samara facilities in 2005. Alcoa has already begun supplying North American automotive OEMs with forged specialty wheels produced at the plant.

The investment in the Belaya Kalitva facility is included in Alcoa's previously announced 2005 capital spending plan of approximately $2.5 billion, of which $1.6 billion is dedicated to growth projects.

Last week, Alcoa disclosed that was to invest $102 million expanding its Jamalco alumina refinery in Clarendon, Jamaica by 150,000 metric tons per year (mtpy) as the first phase of an overall 1.5 million mtpy capacity expansion.

Sadly, however, it's not all good news for the company, as it is to close its KAMA manufacturing plant in Elyria, Ohio in the third quarter of this year. The US plant employs 66 people, producing plastic sheet for thermoforming into consumer products such as deli trays, clam shells and cookie trays.