Officials at Novelis have given a small hint about what may have caused the first of two massive fires that destroyed a key part of its aluminum plant in Oswego County.
On a call Wednesday with investors, industry analysts and reporters to discuss its third quarter financial results, Novelis CEO Steve Fisher gave the first indication of what might have caused the September fire that did heavy damage to the building housing the hot mill, where aluminum is heated and rolled into thin sheets.
“Some of the composition and characteristics of the strip [the long sheets of aluminum] going into the finishing mill, as well as lubricants in the mill and the surrounding area I think were contributing factors to the first fire,” Fisher said.
The company and fire officials have said that no official cause has been identified for either fire yet. A message to Oswego County’s Fire Coordinator’s Office seeking clarification was not returned Wednesday.
As for the second fire in November, which occurred while the hot mill was still unable to operate and as repairs were said to be running ahead of schedule, Fisher said, “We’re still investigating what occurred in the November fire but it was not from operating the mill itself."
The two fires were very different, he said, but the second fire damaged the mill’s equipment and infrastructure more severely.
Novelis has kept workers who were affected by the production shutdown on the payroll, but after the second blaze, the plant’s manager and several top managers suddenly left the company. Novelis announced that it was by mutual agreement.
The worldwide company reported third quarter losses of $160 million, driven by the loss of sales from the Oswego mill. Novelis estimated it will cost more than $180 million to rebuild the hot mill. Oswego County’s Industrial Development Agency agreed to waive sales taxes on purchases needed for the rebuild.
On Tuesday, Ford, the Oswego plant's largest customer, reported $2 billion in losses in 2025 due to the Oswego plant fire and an extra $1 billion in tariffs paid to buy aluminum and auto parts from overseas manufacturers to make up for the loss from Oswego.
Fisher said Novelis expects to have the Oswego hot mill back in full operation by the end of July.
