Glencore hints at 2027 closure for Horne smelter absent deal

[Ben Graham]

The nearly 100-year-old Horne copper smelter. Credit: Glencore.

Glencore (LSE: GLEN) said it’s halting all investments related to emissions reduction at its Horne smelter in northern Quebec after failing to reach a deal with the provincial government on a plan to secure the facility’s long-term viability.

Despite sustained negotiations with Quebec dating back to mid-2025, the regulatory framework needed to justify the planned investments is “not sufficiently in place,” Glencore said Tuesday in a statement. Glencore said it was prepared to invest almost C$1 billion ($730 million) at Horne over five years, including C$300 million for emissions reduction. 

Without completing the planned investments, it will become impossible for the smelter to meet certain emissions targets that come into effect starting in March 2027, Glencore said. “Accordingly, the situation will need to be reassessed in the coming months,” the company stressed.

Investments at Glencore’s CCR copper refinery in Montreal will also be scaled back over the medium term, the company said Tuesday in a statement.

“We have worked in good faith and explored every option available to us. Protecting jobs and maintaining operations remain the company’s top priorities, but the conditions needed to move forward simply are not in place right now,” Marc Bédard, chief operating officer of Glencore’s custom metallurgical assets, said in the statement.