21 December 2022 – Europe’s largest aluminium plant, Hydro Sunndal, has placed an order for specially adapted tube coolers from Ålesund-based supplier Hydroniq Coolers.
Hydro’s Sunndal smelter is Europe's largest aluminium plant and supplier of low-carbon aluminium. It began production in 1954 and has a capacity of 425,000 tonnes annually.
Hydro Sunndal has ordered 14 tube coolers from Hydroniq Coolers. The tube coolers, which are a type of shell and tube heat exchanger, will be used to cool the oil that is used to lower the temperature of the rectifiers at the SU3 prebake plant. They will replace the existing coolers that have been delivered by other suppliers.
“We are talking large-scale industrial rectifiers, which require a lot of cooling to avoid overheating. Our tube coolers will do exactly that,” says Lars Elling Gloppholm, aftermarket sales manager at Hydroniq Coolers.
While the tube cooler is a well-known and somewhat standardised product for land-based process industry and maritime applications, the coolers for Hydro Sunndal will be specially adapted.
“The components we will use are standardised, but the finalised tube cooler will be custom-made specifically for Hydro to ensure that they are an ideal fit for the rectifiers. Offering tailor-made solutions is a key part of our tube cooler offering,” adds Lars Elling Gloppholm.
The order from Hydro was received at the end of October, but the 14 coolers will be delivered as soon as February 2023.
“We look forward to proving our ability to deliver high-quality custom-made solutions despite having quite a short turnaround-time,” smiles Gloppholm.
Hydroniq Coolers will manufacture and assemble the 14 tube coolers at the company’s headquarter at Ellingsøy outside Ålesund, Norway, and deliver it to Hydro Sunndal, located some 150 kilometres eastbound from Ålesund.
Hydroniq Coolers has not disclosed the value of the contract.
