Loan to ALBRAS - Alumínio Brasileiro S.A. in Brazil
Supporting Japanese Aluminum Industry in Securing Long-Term Stable Supply of Low-Carbon Aluminum and Enhancing Supply Chain Resilience

• Region: Latin America and the Caribbean
• Energy and Natural Resources
• Overseas Investment Loans

1. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; Governor: HAYASHI Nobumitsu) signed on October 28 a loan agreement amounting to up to USD85.75 million (JBIC portion) with ALBRAS - Alumínio Brasileiro S.A. (ALBRAS) in Brazil. The loan is co-financed with private financial institutions including MUFG Bank, Ltd. (MUFG). Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) will provide the insurance for the loan by MUFG. Prior to signing this agreement, ALBRAS, JBIC, MUFG, Nippon Amazon Aluminium Co., Ltd. (NAAC), and NEXI signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at strengthening supply chain resilience in the field of low-carbon aluminum^*1. The MOU was announced in the presence of H.E. ISHIBA Shigeru, the former Prime Minister of Japan, and H.E. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil, in March 2025. This agreement was prepared in accordance with the MOU.
     
2. The loan is intended to provide ALBRAS with the necessary funds to make capital investments to address aging equipment and other related issues.
     
3. ALBRAS is an aluminum smelting company in which Norsk Hydro ASA holds a 51% stake and NAAC holds a 49% stake. It has been producing low-carbon aluminum using electricity from renewable energy sources in the state of Pará, northern Brazil, for 40 years since 1985. While Japan relies solely on imports for primary aluminum, NAAC imports a portion of the low-carbon aluminum produced by ALBRAS. ALBRAS is one of the important low-carbon aluminum suppliers for Japan. Its products are in high demand and highly competitive in the low-carbon aluminum market.
     
4. The loan will support maintaining the production of aluminum by ALBRAS through capital investment to address aging equipment and other related issues, thereby contributing toward securing a stable supply of primary aluminum, which is an important resource for Japan. As green transformation (GX) efforts further progress toward carbon neutrality, demand for low-carbon aluminum in Japan is expected to grow in the coming years. The loan facilitates the long-term stable supply of low-carbon aluminum through NAAC and helps strengthen supply chain resilience, in alignment with Japan’s decarbonization efforts.
     
5. As Japan’s policy-based financial institution, JBIC will continue to provide financial support to help secure a stable supply of mineral resources for Japan and Japanese companies by drawing on its various financial facilities and schemes for structuring projects and by performing its risk-assuming function.
     

Note

1. *1 
   See Press Release on March 26, 2025.