MAL Hungarian Aluminium () was a Hungarian company that was specializing in the production of

aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

and related products. It was established in 1995 during the

privatization Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

of the Hungarian aluminium industry. MAL's initial assets were the

Bakony Bakony () is a mountainous region in Transdanubia, Hungary. It forms the largest part of the Transdanubian Mountains. It is located north of Lake Balaton and lies almost entirely in Veszprém county. The Bakony is divided into the Northern and ...

bauxite Bauxite () is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)), and diaspore (α-AlO(OH) ...

mine, an

alumina Aluminium oxide (or aluminium(III) oxide) is a chemical compound of aluminium and oxygen with the chemical formula . It is the most commonly occurring of several aluminium oxides, and specifically identified as aluminium oxide. It is commonly ...

factory in

Ajka Ajka () is a city in Hungary with about 35,000 inhabitants. It is situated in the hills of Bakony. History Around 1000 BCE, the area was inhabited by Celts. By the second century CE, the territory was conquered by the Roman Empire, Romans. The Hu ...

and an aluminium smelter in Inota (municipality of

Várpalota Várpalota (; German: Burgschloß) is a town in Western Hungary, in the Transdanubian county of Veszprém (county), Veszprém. It was a mining town during the Socialism, Socialist era, but the mines have been closed. Most of the citizens work in t ...

), all of them in

Veszprém County Veszprém (, ; ) is an administrative county (''vármegye'') in Hungary. Veszprém is also the name of the capital city of Veszprém county. Veszprém county Veszprém county lies in western Hungary. It covers the Bakony hills and the norther ...

northwestern Hungary.. The company set up subsidiaries in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

, and acquired majority holdings in the SILKEM, producing

zeolite Zeolites are a group of several microporous, crystalline aluminosilicate minerals commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts. They mainly consist of silicon, aluminium, oxygen, and have the general formula ･y where is either a meta ...

s and ground alumina in

Kidričevo Kidričevo () is a town near Ptuj in northeastern Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Kidričevo. The area is part of the traditional region of Styria. The municipality is now included in the Drava Statistical Region. The town is indu ...

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

, and Rudnici Boksita Jajce, which operates a high-grade bauxite mine near

Jajce Jajce ( sr-Cyrl, Јајце) is a town and municipality in the Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the 2013 census, the town has a population of 7,172 inhabitants, wi ...

, central

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. The smelting facilities at Inota were converted into a recycling operation in 2006, and sold off as INOTAL Aluminium Processing Zrt. in 2007. On 4 October 2010, a retaining dam failed on one of the

red mud Red mud, now more frequently termed bauxite residue, is an industrial waste generated during the processing of bauxite into alumina using the Bayer process. It is composed of various oxide compounds, including the iron oxides which give its red ...

ponds at the company's Ajka alumina factory, spilling 600,000–700,000 cubic metres of highly alkaline and corrosive (caustic) red mud arising as a residual product from the treatment of

with

sodium hydroxide Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye and caustic soda, is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a white solid ionic compound consisting of sodium cations and hydroxide anions . Sodium hydroxide is a highly corrosive base (chemistry), ...

. At least ten people died, and about 150 people were injured, in the nearby settlements of

Kolontár Kolontár () is a village in Veszprém county, Hungary. Soil pollution disaster On 4 October 2010 a 1.5–4 meter high wave of red mud Red mud, now more frequently termed bauxite residue, is an industrial waste generated during the pro ...

and

Devecser Devecser () is a town in Veszprém County, Hungary. In the Middle Ages there were five villages in the area of today's Devecser: Devecser, Kisdevecser, Szék, Meggyes, and Patony. These villages expanded in the 12th and 13th century. There is an H ...

. On 13 October 2010, the government

nationalized Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with priv ...

the company. The bill that made this possible had been passed by the Parliament one day earlier. In 2013 the company underwent liquidation. The production facilities were all sold to IC Profil Ltd. in 2015, so no production was undertaken by the company after that time. However, the company still owned the sludge storage facility (not in active use anymore due to the recent change in technology), and various buildings in its Ajka site. The company has completed the liquidation process in the late 2010s (exact year unknown), and in 2020 some of the activities of the successor companies moved from the Ajka site.

References

External links

Official site

Successor Company
{{Authority control Aluminium companies of Hungary Mining companies of Hungary Hungarian brands Manufacturing companies established in 1995 Hungarian companies established in 1995

See also

References

External links