Alcoa to delay shutdown and layoffs at Intalco Works in Ferndale

In a press release today, January 19th, Alcoa announced

it will delay the curtailment of its Intalco Works smelter in Ferndale, Washington until the end of the second quarter of 2016 [end of June].

Alcoa had initially said the smelter would be shut down and workers laid off during the first quarter of 2016 (end of March).

The press release explains the reason for the extension is

recent changes in energy and raw material costs have made it more cost effective in the near term to keep the smelter operating to provide molten metal to the plant’s casthouse.