This is the second significant safety incident at the critical facility in just over two months.
For the second time in just over two months, emergency crews were called to the Novelis aluminium plant in Oswego, New York, a subsidiary of the Aditya Birla Group firm Hindalco Industries. The recurrence of fire incidents at the facility has cast a spotlight on the operational stability of a key supplier for major automakers, particularly Ford Motor Company.
According to a regulatory filing by Hindalco Industries to the BSE, the fire broke out at the Oswego facility on November 20, 2025, at approximately 8:45 a.m. (EDT). The company confirmed that safety protocols were immediately enacted, resulting in the safe evacuation of all personnel on site.
"Everyone working at the plant was safely evacuated and fortunately, there were no injuries," the company stated. Multiple local fire departments responded swiftly to the scene. While the fire has been extinguished, crews remained on-site throughout the day to monitor the situation and ensure no hot spots remained.
This incident is particularly alarming as it follows a major fire at the same location on September 16, 2025, which forced a significant halt in production. The plant, which is a vital hub for producing flat-rolled aluminium products and recycling, was still in the recovery phase from that September blaze. Reports indicate that there was also a smaller, less publicized fire incident at the plant in October.
The timing of this latest fire is critical. The Oswego plant is a primary supplier of aluminium sheets used in the body of Ford鈥檚 best-selling F-150 truck line. The reverberations of the September fire were severe; in October, Ford was forced to cut its profit forecast, citing a gross hit of up to $2 billion stemming from the supply disruption. The automaker had to indefinitely pause production of its F-150 Lightning electric pickup in Michigan and faced disruptions to its gas-powered truck output.
Before this Thursday's fire, Novelis had provided an optimistic update regarding the September damage, announcing plans to restart operations at the affected section of the plant by the end of December鈥攁n acceleration from previous estimates of Q1 2026. However, this new incident throws those recovery plans into uncertainty.
A Novelis spokesperson stated that it was "too soon to say" whether Thursday鈥檚 fire would delay the projected restart timeline. The company reiterated that it is investigating the cause of the fire and determining the impact on operations. Hindalco has previously noted that the plant is insured for property damage and business interruption losses, subject to deductibles and policy limits.
