Business Overview
Century Aluminum Company operates as the largest producer of primary aluminum in the United States. The company manages a geographically diverse portfolio of production assets, consisting of three primary aluminum smelters located across the United States and Europe, alongside upstream and downstream operations. Century’s smelting footprint includes the Grundartangi smelter in Iceland, which boasts a production capacity of 320 kilotonnes per year (ktpy). Within the United States, the company’s assets include the Sebree smelter in Kentucky, possessing a capacity of 220 ktpy, and the Mt. Holly smelter in South Carolina, which maintains a capacity of 230 ktpy. In addition to these primary smelting facilities, Century Aluminum holds a 55% joint venture interest in Jamalco, a bauxite mining and alumina refinery operation situated in Clarendon, Jamaica, with a total operational capacity of 1.4 million tonnes per year. Further supporting the supply chain, the company operates a carbon anode manufacturing plant in Vlissingen, Netherlands, which has a production capacity of 163 ktpy. Century Aluminum’s corporate headquarters are based in Chicago, Illinois.
Key Financial Performance Highlights
For the full fiscal year 2025, Century Aluminum generated total net sales of $2,528 million, representing a top-line expansion compared to the $2,220 million reported during the fiscal year 2024. Despite this increase in consolidated revenue, GAAP net income for the year contracted significantly to $42 million, translating to an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.42, which is a decline from the net income of $337 million, or $3.27 per share, achieved in the prior fiscal year. Conversely, the company’s adjusted net income profile demonstrated robust year-over-year improvement; adjusted net income for FY25 equaled $254 million (or $2.46 per adjusted share), marking a substantial increase from the $101 million (or $0.72 per adjusted share) recorded in FY24. Additionally, full-year Adjusted EBITDA expanded to $425 million in FY25, up from $244 million in FY24.
Analyzing the sequential quarterly performance, net sales for the fourth quarter of 2025 were $634 million, remaining relatively flat when compared to the $632 million generated in the third quarter of 2025. Net income for Q4 2025 was reported at $2 million, yielding an EPS of $0.02, which is a decrease from the Q3 2025 net income of $15 million, or $0.15 per share. However, the company achieved a sequential improvement in adjusted net income, recording $128 million in Q4 2025 compared to $58 million in the preceding quarter. Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter reached $171 million, representing a $70 million sequential increase from the $101 million reported in Q3 2025. This sequential EBITDA growth was primarily driven by favorable LME and delivery premium pricing, which contributed a positive variance of $59 million. Favorable volume and product mix added an additional $10 million to the quarter-over-quarter bridge, while lower operating expenses provided a $5 million benefit. These positive drivers were partially offset by a $2 million headwind stemming from higher energy costs and a $3 million headwind related to raw material expenditures.
On the balance sheet, Century Aluminum closed the fourth quarter of 2025 with $134 million in cash, down from the $151 million balance reported at the end of the third quarter. Total available liquidity at year-end, including the remaining credit facility, stood at $418 million. The company carried a total debt principal balance of $555 million, resulting in a net debt position of $421 million as of December 31, 2025. The cash flow bridge from Q3 to Q4 2025 was supported by the $171 million in Adjusted EBITDA, $53 million in net 45X proceeds, and $45 million from Iceland borrowings. These inflows were heavily offset by cash outlays, including a $116 million casthouse debt repayment, a $48 million impact from the Grundartangi equipment failure, $34 million in capital expenditures, $26 million allocated for taxes and interest, $15 million for hedge settlements, and an additional $48 million toward working capital and other uses. Management’s capital allocation framework targets maintaining liquidity between $250 million and $300 million throughout the economic cycle, alongside a long-term net debt target of $300 million.
Operational Metrics and Market Drivers
Consolidated aluminum shipments for fiscal year 2025 totaled 647,112 tonnes, reflecting a volume decrease from the 677,967 tonnes shipped in fiscal year 2024. The full-year 2025 shipment breakdown by specific smelting facility included 275,000 tonnes from the Grundartangi site, 216,000 tonnes from the Sebree site, and 156,000 tonnes from the Mt. Holly site. Fourth-quarter 2025 shipments amounted to 140,257 tonnes, representing a decline compared to the 162,442 tonnes shipped during the third quarter of 2025. The Sebree facility notably delivered a record performance year across FY25.
The macroeconomic environment for primary aluminum remains tight, supporting robust pricing metrics into the beginning of 2026. The spot LME aluminum price traded at approximately $3,100 per metric tonne. Regional premiums remained elevated, with the U.S. Midwest Premium (MWP) trading at approximately $1.04 per pound (or roughly $2,290 per metric tonne) and the European Duty Paid Premium (EDPP) spot price situated at roughly $365 per metric tonne. Global inventory levels for primary aluminum are currently compressed at historic lows, representing just 47 days of forward consumption. Additionally, supply and demand models forecast ongoing structural deficits, pointing to a primary aluminum balance deficit of 4.0 million tonnes in the United States and 2.8 million tonnes in the European Union for the year 2026. Further supporting domestic market dynamics, the U.S. government continues to enforce a 50% Section 232 tariff on applicable aluminum with no exemptions or exceptions.
The company’s earnings remain highly sensitive to fluctuations in both output pricing and input costs. Based on management’s sensitivity analysis, a $100 per metric tonne change in the LME aluminum price results in a $52.0 million impact on annual Adjusted EBITDA. Additionally, a $22.04 per metric tonne change in the U.S. Midwest Premium alters annual Adjusted EBITDA by $9.0 million, while an equivalent change in the European Duty Paid Premium impacts EBITDA by $7.0 million. On the cost side, a $1 per MWh shift in the MISO Indiana Hub power rate results in a $3.0 million variance in EBITDA, and a $10 per metric tonne change in the price of coke causes a $3.0 million impact. Entering 2026, the spot price for MISO Indiana Hub power trended lower toward $30 per MWh, down from an early year-to-date spike of $86 per MWh. Carbon input costs remained mixed, with spot coke prices steady at $503 per metric tonne and spot caustic soda prices tracking at $415 per metric tonne.
Segment-wise Performance and Operations Updates
Century Aluminum is currently executing multiple operational restarts and facility upgrades across its segments. At the Mt. Holly smelter, the company is preparing to restart over 50,000 metric tonnes of idled production capacity beginning in April 2026. Management expects the Mt. Holly facility to achieve full production capacity by the end of the second quarter of 2026. In Iceland, the restart of the Grundartangi smelter following an equipment failure is advancing ahead of initial schedules, with restart procedures commencing by the end of April 2026. The facility is projected to return to near full production by the end of July 2026. Notably, Century Aluminum has received confirmation of insurance coverage related to the Iceland line loss and collected its first insurance payment during the first quarter of 2026. At the Jamalco bauxite and alumina joint venture, a critical infrastructure upgrade is underway with a new power turbine slated to begin production in April 2026. This turbine is expected to ramp up over the second quarter of 2026 and structurally lower the facility’s production costs by allowing the operation to avoid elevated power grid costs.
Management Commentary and StrategicUpdates
Management outlined extensive, transformative capital projects that will reshape Century Aluminum’s operating scale and footprint. Century has formally announced a joint venture with Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) to construct a new greenfield primary aluminum smelter in Inola, Oklahoma. Century holds a 40% interest in the joint venture, while EGA controls the remaining 60%. This project is historically significant as it will be the first new primary aluminum smelter constructed in the United States in 50 years, adding 750,000 tonnes per year of capacity and effectively doubling the size of the domestic industry. The U.S. Department of Energy is supporting this strategic investment with a grant of up to $500 million, which is currently being assigned to the project. The smelter will deploy EGA’s proprietary EX technology, billed as the most advanced smelting technology ever installed in the United States. Near-term milestones for the project include finalizing the energy contract and completing detailed engineering work. A final investment decision (FID) is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026, with the initial production of hot metal targeted for the end of 2029. The project is projected to generate 4,000 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent direct jobs, fulfilling a mandate to reshore production capacity for national security interests.
Furthermore, Century successfully executed the redevelopment of its former Hawesville site, officially closing the transaction in February 2026. The site is being transformed into a new High-Performance Computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence data center campus. Under the terms of the transaction, Century received $200 million in cash upfront and retained a 6.8% non-dilutive equity interest in the fully completed data center. The data center is expected to achieve energization in the second half of 2027, and Century holds a put option allowing the company to sell its equity stake one year after energization occurs.
Looking ahead, management established a financial outlook for the first quarter of 2026, guiding to an Adjusted EBITDA range of $215 million to $235 million, assuming estimated realized market pricing. For the full fiscal year 2026, Century anticipates total aluminum shipments of 630,000 tonnes, which will be segmented into 215,000 tonnes from Sebree, 200,000 tonnes from Mt. Holly, and 215,000 tonnes from Grundartangi. Full-year 2026 capital expenditures are forecasted to total between $55 million and $60 million for sustaining projects and between $60 million and $65 million for investment capital expenditures, a figure that includes the Mt. Holly restart investments.
Notable Risks or Challenges
The company’s operations remain exposed to various environmental, operational, and macroeconomic risks. Weather-related disruptions posed a tangible challenge early in the year, as Winter Storm Fern struck in late January 2026, causing widespread power outages across the United States. This storm triggered elevated heating demand, resulting in an immediate spike in power prices that temporarily impacted the cost profile at the Sebree smelter, though energy rates subsequently returned to historical norms. Inherent operational risks were also evident through recent equipment failures at both the Grundartangi and Jamalco facilities, which resulted in significant non-GAAP adjustments to historical earnings. From a macroeconomic perspective, Century Aluminum’s forward-looking statements acknowledge persistent risks related to global supply chains, specifically citing the potential impacts of the ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. The company also highlighted that sanctions and export controls targeting Russia, sanctioned entities, and individuals could influence market dynamics. Ultimately, management noted that the business’s capacity to meet financial targets remains largely dependent upon future global economic conditions, the availability and pricing of essential power, and the broader trajectory of the global aluminum markets.
