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LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WDRB) – Braidy Industries has secured US $ 200 million for its future aluminum mill in Ashland, Kentucky, thanks to an investment by Russian aluminum giant United Company Rusal PLC.
Rusal will become the "exclusive supplier" of Braidy Industries, which will supply $ 500 million worth of aluminum a year to the Kentucky mill for 10 years, the two companies announced in a statement released Monday.
Rusal and its parent company, En + Group, were subject to US sanctions until January, when the Trump administration lifted them. The sanctions were a punishment for Russia's presumed interference in the 2016 US presidential election, the Wall Street Journal reported.
In + Group and Rusal belong in part to the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, who remains under the personal sanctions of the US government.
Rusal's $ 200 million investment helps Braidy Industries, which belongs in part to Kentucky taxpayers, to reach its $ 500 million equity goal. The $ 500 million is needed for Braidy Industries to fund the construction of the $ 1.7 billion plant, which is expected to open by 2021.
"This strategic partnership aims to create from start to finish the world's first low-carbon industrial aluminum rolling mill," Braidy Industries said in a press release.
In an interview with CNBC released on Monday, Braidy Industries founder and CEO Craig Bouchard dismissed questions about the possibility of doing business with Rusal, saying any cloud that would weigh on the company since US sanctions would soon disappear.
Braidy Industries CEO: Rusal will be a CNBC superstar.
"If you remember Hannah Montana, everyone loved her at the time. Then she became a teenager – Miley Cyrus – and the media got her a little trapped. She is now a beautiful married woman, "said Bouchard. "I expect Rusal to become the superstar of our industry."
Braidy Industries has announced the launch of the world's cheapest aluminum sheet for customers such as automakers and aerospace.
Automakers have opted for aluminum as a lighter alternative to steel, giving cars and trucks better fuel economy.
"All car manufacturers are committed to sustainability and carbon reduction, and I think we're going to be their preferred supplier," Bouchard told CNBC on Monday.
In exchange for the $ 200 million investment, Rusal will obtain a 40% stake in Braidy Atlas, the subsidiary of Braidy Industries that will own and operate the plant.
According to the Wall Street Journal Sunday evening, Mr. Bouchard reportedly said that Rusal's investment would "allow" Braidy Industries to reach the $ 500 million equity needed to borrow $ 1.2 billion for the construction of the building. 'factory.
A spokeswoman for Braidy Industries did not immediately comment on Monday when she was asked to confirm whether the company had raised the remaining $ 300 million.
Braidy Industries, a private company, is selling its shares, which are due to end on June 15. Bouchard announced that he was considering making the company public in July, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The state of Kentucky was one of the first investors of Braidy Industries. The state invested $ 15 million in May 2017 as part of Governor Matt Bevin's efforts to unload the mill and its 600 well-paying manufacturing jobs in the state's Appalachian region.
Some Republicans opposed to lifting sanctions against Russian companies
Trump's Treasury Department announced in December that it was considering lifting the sanctions against Rusal and En + Group after Deripaska agreed to reduce its stake in the companies.
In January, some Republicans joined the Democrats in an unsuccessful attempt to block the Treasury's decision and maintain the sanctions in effect.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has opposed the effort to block sanctions relief against Russian companies, the New York Times reported in January.
A spokesman for McConnell did not immediately answer Monday whether Braidy Industries' investment played a role in McConnell's stance on sanctions.
Braidy Industries Seeks Additional Trump Administration Support to Realize Aluminum Plant: Seeking Funding Below US $ 800 Million in US Department of Finance Program energy to produce efficient vehicles.
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