Aluminium maker Norsk Hydro aims to cut costs again

Aluminium maker Norsk Hydro aims to cut costs again
FILE PHOTO: A general view of the Norwegian aluminium producer Norsk Hydro headquarters in Oslo, Norway May 8, 2019, REUTERS/Terje Solsvik Copyright Terje Solsvik(Reuters)
By Reuters
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OSLO (Reuters) - Norsk Hydro <NHY.OL>, one of the world's largest aluminium producers, aims to get its cost-cutting efforts back on track after major operational setbacks in the last year-and-a-half, its chief executive said on Tuesday.

The company's new goal is to boost earnings by 6.4 billion crowns (569 million pounds) over the next five years, said Hilde Merete Aasheim, who took the helm at Norway's Hydro in May.

Following a spill at one of its plants in Brazil, Hydro last year abandoned plans to cut costs by 3 billion crowns from 2015 until 2019. It has since been hit by a major cyber attack that paralysed networks and dented its profit.

"Hydro aims to lift cash flows and returns with extensive improvement and restructuring efforts across its business areas," the company said in a statement ahead of a capital markets event in Oslo.

CEO Aasheim is set to restructure Hydro's rolled-products business. That division would aim to cut costs by 0.9 billion crowns in over the next five years, the company said on Tuesday.

Earlier this month, the Norwegian firm had announced plans to close production of some rolled products in Germany and said it could lay off more than 700 workers in a bid to increase profitability.

(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche and Victoria Klesty; Editing by Kim Coghill and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

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