Spectro Alloys and The Opus Group®, joined by Governor Tim Walz and Rosemount Mayor Jeff Weisensel, broke ground Wednesday on a $71 million expansion to add new aluminum recycling capabilities to Spectro’s Rosemount campus. Spectro Alloys, the leading Midwest-based aluminum recycler, plans to recycle more end-of-life scrap aluminum to improve recycling rates in Minnesota and meet a growing demand for recycled aluminum sheet ingot and extrusion billet.
Spectro Alloys will produce recycled billet and sheet ingot in a new 90,000-square-foot building along Highway 55. The first phase of the project will result in nearly 120 million pounds per year of additional recycling capacity and create up to 50 new full-time jobs. The facility will include state-of-the-art equipment for sorting, melting, casting, sawing, homogenizing, and packaging with industry-leading automation and the best available pollution control technology. Spectro’s plant will also provide energy use and carbon emission reductions of 95% when compared to new aluminum production.
“We are excited to celebrate the future of aluminum recycling right here in Minnesota. This expansion will meet the growing demand for high quality recycled aluminum products while providing value that supports recycling across Minnesota and beyond. It’s a win-win for our company, our customers and our community,” said Spectro Alloys President Luke Palen.
Aluminum billet is used as raw material for the extrusion process, and is turned into products like railings, window and door trim, and structural components for cars, boats, airplanes, trailers, and docks. Spectro will also have the ability to recycle used beverage containers into sheet ingot (slabs of aluminum weighing up to 60,000 pounds each), a feedstock for rolling mills. In Minnesota, only 45% of aluminum beverage containers are currently being recycled, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
“We’re building a strong and sustainable economy in Minnesota,” Gov. Walz said. “And it’s businesses like Spectro Alloys that are creating jobs and valuable products and communities like Rosemount, where businesses have the support they need to be successful. This is a win for Rosemount and a win for Minnesota.”
Construction will continue through 2024, and the facility is expected to begin
production in mid-2025.
“We’re excited to be part of the Spectro Alloys’ project team and help build their vision for the future,” said John Williams vice president at The Opus Group. “We look forward to delivering a new modern industrial facility through our integrated design-build delivery model.”
