Company: CENX
Filing Date: 2025-11-06
Form Type: 10-Q
Source: 0001628280-25-050200
Chunk: 68

Company: CENTURY ALUMINUM CO
Filing Date: 2025-11-06
Form: 10-Q
Item: Part I, Item 1
Chunk 68
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 Operations

The following discussion for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025 reflects no change in production capacities. 

Our net sales are impacted primarily by the LME price for aluminum, regional and value-added premiums, and the volume and product mix of aluminum we ship during the period. In general, our results reflect the LME and regional premium pricing on an approximately one to three month lag basis reflecting contractual terms with our customers.

Electrical power, alumina, carbon products, labor, and other controllable costs are the principal components of our cost of goods sold. Power costs can be volatile as a result of a number of factors beyond our control. See "Item 1A. Risk Factors — Increases in energy costs may adversely affect our business, financial position, results of operations and liquidity" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024. Power costs at our Sebree plant are impacted by capacity demand charges, which are determined based on available power generating capacity in MISO, from which we purchase energy. The price of such capacity is set by auction annually in the spring. Our capacity demand costs for power were approximately $3.1 million for the twelve months ending May 31, 2025, in addition to the market price of power used. We anticipate the capacity demand power costs resulting from the spring 2025 auction for the twelve months ending May 31, 2026 to be approximately $6.2 million.

In 2025, energy prices in the US and Europe have been slightly elevated due to increases in energy demand in both markets. European energy markets impact our Vlissingen facility in the Netherlands, which utilizes natural gas to produce anodes used in our Grundartangi operations. The energy market in Europe has historically been dependent upon imported natural gas from Russia, and the significant reduction in Russian gas supply to Europe has resulted in increased uncertainty with respect to the price and availability of natural gas. Adverse changes to European natural gas prices or availability could adversely affect operations at Vlissingen, and in turn operations at Grundartangi, if we are not able to source an alternative supply of anodes.

The pricing under our alumina supply contracts varies from contract to contract. A major portion of our alumina requirements is indexed to the price of primary aluminum, which provides a natural hedge to one of our largest production costs. We also purchase alumina based on a published alumina index and at fixed prices. The alumina price is