ALCOA INESPAL - AVILÉS

ALCOA INESPAL - AVILÉS is a non-ferrous metals plant in Spain. Non-ferrous metals plants melt, refine and cast metals in furnaces and crucibles above their melting points; losses from uninsulated transfers and holding vessels are significant. It emits about 118,000 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE, roughly comparable to the annual emissions of 28k passenger cars.

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-3673159.

In context: how this facility compares

Subsector: other-metals. As non-ferrous metals plant, it requires high process heat (typically 400–1200°C) for its core industrial operations — heat that must be supplied by boilers, furnaces or direct combustion, and losses through uninsulated vessels and piping represent wasted fuel. Removable modular insulation can cut those losses by 80–96%, surface-cooling equipment to ≤45°C, with payback often under 2 years. Non-ferrous metals plants melt, refine and cast metals in furnaces and crucibles above their melting points; losses from uninsulated transfers and holding vessels are significant.

Capacity & CO₂-intensity comparison computed from Climate TRACE industrial facilities data; sector role based on engineering reference.

What 118,000 t CO₂e a year looks like

This facility's reported annual CO₂e in everyday equivalents from the US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies calculator:

Equivalencies: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies. Emissions: Climate TRACE.

Local climate

ALCOA INESPAL - AVILÉS sits in a temperate oceanic climate zone (Köppen Cfb), at 43.6°N in the northern hemisphere.

Köppen zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).

Site climate & environmental severity

The local climate sets how fast unprotected steel, protective coatings and the insulation on hot process equipment degrade at this site. It sits in a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1375 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.06× the loss at a 20 °C reference; removable insulation recovers about 1306 W/m² of that. Reference-surface calculation at a 150 °C surface from WorldClim climate normals (ASTM C680 / ISO 12241) — an indicative per-climate comparison, not a measurement of this site’s specific equipment. Open method dataset: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20787408 (CC BY 4.0).

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby sites

Nearby industrial sites

• ArcelorMittal Asturias (Aviles) steel plant · Steel Plant · 3,891,500 t CO₂
• ArcelorMittal Asturias (Gijón) steel plant · Steel Plant · 1,822,038 t CO₂
• Aboño Cement Plant · Cement Plant · 864,305 t CO₂
• Tudela Veguin - Fábrica De Cales Y Cementos De Tudela Veguín · Lime Plant · 582,560 t CO₂
• Tudela de Vegin Cement Plant · Cement Plant · 78,869 t CO₂
• Grupo Empresarial ENCE S.A. Divisíon de Celulosa - Pulp Mill Navia · Pulp & Paper Mill · 209,957 t CO₂

Location

Coordinates 43.55547, -5.92199. View on OpenStreetMap.

Heat loss & insulation profile

For a non-ferrous metals plant, the main modular-insulation targets are furnaces, ladles, heat-treatment ovens, ducting & valves. Typical hot-surface ranges used for screening: 150–1,000 °C °C.

Indicative recoverable energy

A first-pass insulation screen suggests about 2,200 MWh/year of recoverable heat-loss reduction and about 440 t CO₂e/year of avoided emissions. Screening estimate scaled from installed process-heat projects and surface-temperature reduction data.

See Inzonex Modular Insulation → Run the calculator →

Screening calculation from facility class, capacity and open emissions/energy context. Engineering survey required before procurement.

Safety & the no-regret first step

Start with a thermal survey of valves, flanges, doors and bends. Removable modular insulation keeps maintenance access open while lowering exposed-surface temperature and wasted heat.

EU policy pressure on this sector

Obligation

This facility is inside the EU. For thermal equipment, insulation upgrades can support ETS exposure reduction and energy-efficiency compliance.

Sources: EU ETS, CBAM and national energy-efficiency schemes.

Frequently asked questions