South 32 once again warns that if the power challenge is not properly addressed, the Mozal smelter will be shut down
August 15, 2025
According to foreign media reports, Australian miner South 32 announced that its Mozambican aluminium smelter has suffered a impairment of 372 million US dollars. At the same time, the company stated that if it does not obtain affordable electricity before the expiration of the existing power supply agreement (valid until March 2026), it plans to idle the smelter.
South 32 has been maintaining cooperation with the Mozambican government, the hydropower producer Hidroelectrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB), and the South African national power company (ESKOM). If both sides can reach an agreement on the cost, the closure of the smelting plant is not yet a certainty.
HCB Company is majority-owned by the Mozambican government and is the main power supplier for Mozal Aluminium. When HCB Company is unable to meet the power demand of the smelter, according to the current agreement, Eskom Company will act as a supplement.
South 32 expects that by the fiscal year 2026, its share of output from the Mozal smelter will drop to approximately 240,000 tons, compared with 355,000 tons in the fiscal year 2025.
