PyroGenesis Inc. has completed the installation and commissioning of seven Drosrite aluminium dross recovery systems at a purpose-built plant in Saudi Arabia, closing out its original contract with Radian Oil and Gas Services Company. The Montreal-based technology provider said on October 15, 2026, that the final four units are now installed and operational.
The plant sits within what PyroGenesis describes as the world's largest vertically integrated aluminium production complex. Together, the seven systems can process up to 45,000 tonnes of aluminium dross a year.
How the capacity is split
The finished installation pairs two 5,000-tonne-per-year systems with two 10,000-tonne-per-year systems. According to the company, the larger units are the first of that capacity to be deployed by PyroGenesis anywhere in the world.
The first three Drosrite units, each rated at 5,000 tonnes per year, entered full commercial operation in April 2022 at a temporary facility while the permanent plant was being engineered and built. All three have since been relocated to the new site alongside the four recently commissioned units, bringing total annual processing capacity to 45,000 tonnes of aluminium dross.
PyroGenesis said further dross processing requirements could emerge as the wider aluminium complex continues to expand.
What Drosrite recovers
Aluminium dross forms when oxygen comes into contact with molten aluminium, causing solid impurities to rise to the surface where they are skimmed off. PyroGenesis states the material can contain up to 80 per cent metallic aluminium mixed with oxides, salts, fluxing agents and other contaminants.
The company estimates that smelters can lose between 2 and 10 per cent of their annual aluminium melt production through dross. The material has traditionally been landfilled or reprocessed with salt or chemicals, although suitable treatment can recover valuable metal and other materials for reuse.
PyroGenesis says its patented Drosrite technology can recover up to 98 per cent of the aluminium contained in dross, with lower operating costs and energy consumption than some conventional processes. The salt-free method is also designed to avoid generating hazardous salt cakes that require disposal, allowing dross to be processed on-site.
Industry context
President and CEO P. Peter Pascali said growing aluminium demand was increasing the need to manage production by-products effectively. He added that poorly processed or landfilled dross represents both a loss of recoverable material and an environmental challenge for the industry.
Industry figures cited in the announcement put total aluminium usage, including primary and recycled metal, at 100.8 million tonnes in 2024, up from 82 million tonnes in 2016. Smelter output rose from 59.9 million tonnes to 72.9 million tonnes over the same period.
- Dross generation is estimated to grow by 3 to 4 per cent annually.
- Approximately 4.78 million tonnes of dross was generated in 2024.
- Some estimates put annual generation as high as 8 million tonnes when smaller facilities and downstream operations are included.
- An estimated 30 to 40 per cent of dross, particularly from the secondary aluminium sector, continues to be landfilled.
PyroGenesis said those figures underline the potential role of recovery technologies in reducing metal losses and managing waste as aluminium production expands.