Alcoa Shifts Inventory to North America Amid War in Middle East

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Written by Will Ploch, Assistant Editor-in-Chief for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

Amid turmoil in the Middle East, Alcoa is trying to move much of its inventory to North America and navigate geopolitical disputes that have roiled the Metals & Minerals Industry.

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Kinks in the Supply Chain

Aluminum producer Alcoa Corporation saw its fortunes in first-quarter 2026 rise and fall with conflict in the Middle East. The company, which is shifting much of its inventory to its North American holdings, is trying to navigate waters--literally and figuratively--around a conflict that alters global demand and trade routes almost daily. According to Industrial Info Resources data, Alcoa accounts for more than $1.8 billion worth of active and proposed projects worldwide, including about $500 million worth of smelting-related projects in the U.S. and Canada.

Alcoa's stock price enjoyed a rally in recent months, following the outbreak of the Iran war. The resulting closure of the Strait of Hormuz tied up aluminum exports from major producers like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), boosting demand from producers based elsewhere. Conversely, Alcoa's stock price tumbled when the closely watched waterway reopened toward the end of last week.

"Structural dependencies in the Middle East mean that disruption there does not stay local," said William Oplinger, the chief executive officer of Alcoa, in a quarterly earnings-related conference call. "Any further disruption in the Middle East has the potential to constrain supply even more. And that matters because the Middle East is the largest primary aluminum-exporting region in the world. Disruptions to metal flows from the region are not only lifting LME [London Metal Exchange] prices, they are also driving higher regional premiums across Europe, North America and Asia."

But the conflict created just as many headaches for Alcoa as it created temporary advantages. Alcoa's profits for the first quarter of 2026 fell 22.45% from the same period last year to $425 million, as shipments of alumina (the raw material used to produce aluminum) dropped 31% over the same time period, due in part to the chaos in global shipping traffic caused by the Hormuz closure. Lower trading and inventory repositioning in North America caused Alcoa's aluminum shipments to drop 8%.

Alcoa's inventory repositioning involves moving roughly 30,000 metric tons of metal to U.S. markets, which executives said delayed about $150 million in revenue from the first to the second quarter of 2026. Among Alcoa's North American sites set for rebuilding and modernization is its West Plant in Massena, New York, which has a name plate production capacity of 143,000 tons per year of aluminum.

According to Industrial Info Resources data, the Massena West project could begin construction as early as 2027, although it presently remains in its planning phase. Subscribers to the Industrial Info Resources Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Plant and Project databases can learn more about Massena West--including key components, investment values and necessary equipment--from a detailed plant profile and project report.

In the earnings call, Oplinger pointed to other potential for the Massena complex: "We are in advanced discussions on the monetization of our former Massena East smelter site for a data center project. The potential developer has applied for public review. We are still finalizing terms and will not comment on value today, but we will provide additional details later in the process." Massena East closed in 2014.

By the Numbers

• More than $1.8 billion: According to Industrial Info Resources data, the total investment value of Alcoa projects worldwide
• 22.45%: Alcoa's drop in profits from first-quarter 2025 to first-quarter 2026
• 30,000 metric tons: Amount of metal inventory Alcoa is shifting to North American markets

Tune-Ups Across North America

Alcoa's inventory shift to North America comes at the right time, Oplinger noted: "We are seeing a lot of spot order requests coming to us based on the disruption in the Middle Eastern supply chain."

Other North American facilities set for improvements include Alcoa's Aluminerie de Bécancour smelter in Becancour, Quebec. The company is preparing to begin work next year on a rebuild of Smelter No. 2, which produces 85,000 of the complex's nameplate 509,000 tons per year of aluminum products.

According to Industrial Info Resources data, Alcoa already is at work on a series of upgrades and equipment additions at Becancour, which are set to wrap up later this year. Subscribers can learn more from a plant profile and detailed project reports on Smelter No. 2 and the other improvements.

"Both in Europe and North America, our commercial teams have been extremely busy trying to see whether we can match up our excess capacity with what our customers are needing currently," Oplinger said in the earnings call. "We are matching up some excess capacity that we have in places like Québec--and, to some extent, in Europe--with the needs of customers that have struggled given the supply-chain disruptions."

Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and proposed projects worldwide from Alcoa.

Subscribers to Industrial Info Resources' GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.

Key Takeaways

• Alcoa took a hit in the first quarter of 2026 amid lower trading and shipping delays, some of which is related to the conflict in the Middle East.
• The company is repositioning much of its inventory to North America to address supply-chain concerns.
• Several key North American facilities are set for major improvement projects.

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About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, Industrial Info Resources has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. Industrial Info Resources' Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, Industrial Info Resources is tracking more than 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 trillion (USD).