In October 2012, Hydro and Orkla agreed to merge their aluminum profiles, tubes and construction systems into a joint venture in which the two companies would own 50% of the shares each.

With the approval of the Chinese competition authorities on August 19, the last one missing, the transaction was completed on September 1.

Sapa AS, with 23,000 employees and based in Oslo, Norway, combines local expertise with a global network and research and development capacity, in addition to serving its customers from more than 100 production units in 40 countries.

The new joint venture has a leading position in Europe and North America, in addition to having a strong presence in emerging markets such as Brazil, China, India and Vietnam.