It’s time to close the loophole
Close the EU alumina sanctions loophole
Irish alumina exports continue to ship to russia circumventing EU sanctions and feeding Russia’s war machine
WHY THIS TRADE MUST END
The ongoing alumina trade between Ireland’s Aughinish Alumina plant and Russia continues to supply a strategic material that multiple reports and campaigners argue plays a direct role in sustaining Russia’s industrial and military capacity. Despite sweeping EU sanctions, this trade route remains open, creating a loophole that undermines wider European efforts to limit Russia’s ability to wage war. As highlighted by campaign groups behind this initiative, the issue is not abstract — alumina is a critical precursor for aluminium, which in turn is used across aerospace, transport, electronics, and defence manufacturing. Allowing this supply chain to continue effectively enables Russia to maintain production levels that many believe should be restricted during an active conflict.
Ireland now sits at the centre of a contradiction: while the EU seeks to pressure Russia economically, one of Europe’s largest alumina refineries continues to ship a material that Russia depends on. This campaign argues that closing this loophole is both a moral and strategic necessity. Ending the trade would align Ireland with the broader European sanctions framework, remove a key resource from Russia’s industrial pipeline, and demonstrate that no member state is willing to allow exceptions that weaken collective action.
Australia banned the export of Alumina to Russia in March 2022 due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine setting in place a global precedent in respect of alumina sanctions on Russia.
This website exists to give people the information they need to understand the issue and to take meaningful steps — including contacting Members of the European Parliament — to help bring this trade to an end.
CRIME AND CORRUPTION
Aughinish Alumina in Ireland exports most of its alumina to Russian smelters, whose aluminum is sold to traders supplying dozens of EU‑sanctioned Russian weapons manufacturers, legally enabling materials used in missiles and other arms targeting Ukraine.
These arms manufacturers include more than 40 firms that have been sanctioned by the EU, and whose weapons have killed thousands of civilians and caused widespread damage in Ukraine.
Despite the EU’s calls for member states to stockpile alumina due to its importance in industry and defense, the bloc has not placed restrictions on the raw material’s export to Russia.
UNDERSTANDING THE NUMBERS
A 10,000‑DWT vessel has the ability to transport around 9,000 tons of alumina. Deadweight tonnage reflects the total safe carrying capacity of a ship, and in this scenario, the majority of that weight is dedicated to alumina — the refined ore used globally in aluminium production.
Using standard industrial conversion rates, those 9,000 tons of alumina can be processed into approximately 4,500 tons of aluminium. This step is crucial: it translates a bulk commodity into a high‑value manufacturing material used across aerospace, automotive, and defence industries.
Each Shahed drone requires roughly 20 kg of aluminium for its lightweight airframe. This number matters because it demonstrates how little material is needed to produce a single unit. Aluminium’s strength‑to‑weight ratio makes it ideal for long‑range, low‑cost drones, and its global availability enables rapid, scalable production.
When you divide 4,500 tons of aluminium by 20 kg per drone, the result is striking: a single shipload of alumina represents the potential to manufacture around 225,000 drones.
This figure is not a prediction of actual output, but a demonstration of scale. This shows how raw materials — often viewed as routine cargo — can have significant downstream impact when channelled into weapons manufacturing.
THE ENVIROMENTAL IMPACT
For every ton of Alumina produced, two tons of caustic waste is created to add to the pile of 50 million tons across 450 acres of ‘red mud’. This waste can be seen from space and is stored directly next to a main local waterway, the Shannon Estuary. This plant is contributing to the russian war effort while putting the local area at massive risk.
The Aughinish Alumina plant uses 10 to 15 percent of Ireland’s domestic gas supply, highlighting a stark reality where our local resources fuel a trade that not only jeopardises the environment but also inadvertently sustains a military machine in conflict.
Here is a powerful investigative documentary exposing the hidden realities surrounding the Aughinish Alumina plant on the Shannon Estuary.
Blending on‑the‑ground reporting with historical and political context, it reveals how environmental risk, corporate influence, and regulatory failure have combined to create a long‑running crisis disguised as progress.
The film traces the global forces behind the operation, the local communities affected, and the systemic decisions that allowed the situation to escalate. It offers a compelling, accessible look at one of Ireland’s most controversial industrial sites and the wider system that sustains it.
INCOMING GLOBAL ALUMINIUM SHORTAGE LOOMS
Iranian strikes on EGA’s Al Taweelah smelter in Abu Dhabi and Alba’s facility in Bahrain in late March didn’t just knock out production lines. At Al Taweelah, the strikes cut power to the facility entirely, forcing the potlines into an uncontrolled shutdown.
Metal solidified inside the smelting circuits. That’s months of structural damage.
The two plants together produced around 3.2 million tonnes of cast metal in 2025. The disruption has now cascaded beyond aluminum: Bahrain’s Foulath Holding, parent of Bahrain Steel, declared force majeure the same day.
Together with curtailments at Qatar’s Qatalum, the combined production loss could reach around 3 million tonnes by the time the dust settles.
Mercuria puts the global deficit at 2 million metric tons by year-end. Others think that’s optimistic.
LME aluminum hit a four-year high on April 16. Traders warn prices could push past the 2022 record of $4,073 per tonne if shipping through the Strait of Hormuz doesn’t resume soon.
After the US and UK banned Russian aluminum from major exchanges in April 2024, Gulf exports to Western markets surged to fill the gap. Now that gap has a gap.
Europe isn’t insulated either. One industry executive described the prospect of cascading Gulf smelter closures as “an unbelievable threat” for European manufacturers.
The world is facing a major Alumina shortage which will have profound impacts on the global economy.
Important: Owing to the unprecedented global demand for Alumina, the opportunities for Aughinish Alumina to diversify their customer base in Europe and beyond is endless. There are fears amongst local workers that their jobs depend on this trade. If the EU bans the export of Alumina, and the plant shuts, it won’t be because of commercial necessity but a strategic decision of the Russian government to prevent Alumina falling into the hands of the West. Indeed, Ireland could step in and nationalise the plant till war’s end to maintain control and jobs and importantly, redirect the Alumina.
Yet, Ireland is still exporting up to 70% of its alumina production to Russia which uses it for its war effort.
CAMPAIGN GOAL
Our goal is to put an end to European exports of Alumina to the Russian Federation. Alumina is used in the production of Aluminium, which is then used to produce missiles and drones. The missiles and drones are then used against the Ukrainian people. By making it harder for Russia to acquire Alumina, we make it harder for them to terrorise the people of Ukraine.
MEP's who have pledged support
Different member states represented in support
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Percentage of the EU Parliament supporting
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