Metalico Aluminum Recovery Inc. was issued an air permit for its new aluminum smelting plant in Dewitt, NY, outside of Syracuse, clearing a final regulatory hurdle for its expansion. It is expected to bring 70 jobs to the area.

Metalico Aluminum makes processed aluminum products, specifically deoxidizing cones and shot used in steelmaking. Production is scheduled to start this spring and when fully operational, the plant will have a capacity of 6,000,000 lb/month.

The company began producing aluminum deox at a pilot plant in Lackawanna, NY, in 2003, generating approx. 900,000 lb/month. With the new site in Dewitt, Metalico announced plans to relocate and expand it operations after extensive renovations.

The new plant will house a new 180,000 lb/28 million BTU reverberatory furnace; a 96-in. diameter turnings dryer; a 300 HP ring mill turnings crusher; three cone casting lines; and a shot line, all supported by state-of-the-art pollution control equipment. The air permit, issued by New York State Dept. of Environmental Services, also allows for a second reverberatory furnace, a sweat furnace, and a rotary furnace to be added over the next few years, which could take Metalico Aluminum's overall aluminum capacity to more than 100,000 lb/month of processed aluminum.