Image: AMAG/Weiihbold
After a strong year in 2022, the aluminum group AMAG, headquartered in Braunau-Ranshofen, expects good results again this year. Despite high energy prices and the ongoing problems in the supply chain, business at AMAG is going very well. The aluminum group is benefiting from the increasing demand in the transport, packaging and construction sectors. Lightweight construction is a big issue in e-mobility due to the heavy batteries.
In addition, there are the good heat properties of aluminum. And aluminum has the perfect properties for a circular economy – as it can be recycled as often as you like. 75 to 80 percent of the raw material processed by AMAG in Ranshofen is scrap. “The growth rates are positive, so I’m not worried at all,” said AMAG boss Gerald Mayer in the “Business Journalists’ Club” in Vienna.
A stumbling block, however, is the general shortage of workers, with several thousand workers missing in the Innviertel alone. AMAG boss Gerald Mayer is concerned about the uncertainties in the energy supply. In any case, one thing is clear: “We will certainly need gas for the next 20 years.” According to Mayer, he sees a double standard in this country: a lot of energy is imported from questionable sources, while at the same time there are protests against domestic energy production.
Fossil fuels cannot be replaced by green electricity in all sectors, and in many places the technology for the Green Deal is still lacking. There will probably be parallel operation of gas and hydrogen for a while, but how this should work side by side is still an open question. For this year, Mayer pointed out that the drought and the low water levels in the rivers are not a good omen for the energy supply. AMAG itself is an energy-intensive company, two-thirds of whose energy needs are covered by gas and one-third by electricity. Although one is one of the few companies that have their own gas storage facilities, this is only a bridging aid. In 2022, AMAG achieved new sales and earnings records. Revenue rose 37 percent to €1.727 billion and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 33 percent to €247.1 million. AMAG has a total of 2200 employees.
Source: Nachrichten
