Feasibility study of low-carbon aluminium production in Europe, for Europe
Arctial is a project company that will conduct a feasibility study of low-carbon aluminium production in Finland across social, technical, environmental and commercial dimensions.
Core team
Arctial’s core team brings extensive experience in the aluminium industry, metallurgy, finance, business strategy, supply chain, marketing and more. Alongside its partners and industry advisors, the project company is well-equipped to conduct the feasibility study and assess the potential of establishing a low-carbon aluminium manufacturing facility in Finland.
Torbjörn Sternsjö
CEO
Torbjörn has extensive experience from leadership roles in the aluminium industry. He has held several significant positions, including European President of Gränges, CEO of Sapa Chalco Aluminium Products, Project Leader at Saab and Chairman of Altris. Torbjörn holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and Technology from Linköping University and an MBA in Business Administration from China Europe International Business School. 
Karl Johan Sundin
CFO
Karl Johan has a strong background in corporate finance and private equity. Before joining Arctial, he spent over a decade at EQT, most recently serving as Director. Prior to that, he worked at Macquarie Group and Point Carbon. Karl Johan holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Lund University. 
Tim Murray
Acting COO
Tim has extensive experience in the aluminium and automotive industries. Tim was CEO of Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) and spent 12 years living in the Middle East. During his time at Alba, he also held the roles of CFO, CMO and Chief Supply Chain Officer. Before that, he was the CFO of ARC Automotive. Tim holds an MBA in Business Administration from Vanderbilt University and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Susquehanna University.
Katarina von Horn
External Relations Manager
Katarina is External Relations Manager with a background in media and consulting. She was previously a partner at Warpin Media and has also worked as a management consultant. Katarina holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Business from European Business School London.
Linda Jansson
Communication Manager
Linda has a background in communication and marketing, with a particular focus on stakeholder management and multilingual communication. She has previously worked at the export organization Viexpo and as a project manager at Centria UAS, where she closely collaborated with small and medium-sized enterprises. Linda holds a Master’s degree in Economics from Svenska Handelshögskolan.
Jöran Sopo
Site Manager
Jöran has extensive experience in operations and leadership serving more than 30 years in the cobalt refining and the cobalt and nickel specialty chemicals business. He was managing director for Umicore Finland as well as the predecessor companies Freeport Cobalt and OMG Kokkola Chemicals, operating in the Kokkola Industrial Park. Prior to that he held various managerial positions in production, projects and R&D. Jöran holds a Master's degree in Chemical Engineering from Åbo Akademi. 
Daniel Espelund
Corporate Development Director
Daniel has a strong background in strategy, finance and business development. Before joining Arctial, he spent more than two years at MW Group as Investment Manager. He also held roles at Boston Consulting Group and EQT, working on advisory and investment strategies across several different industries. Daniel holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Finance and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Business and Economics from the Stockholm School of Economics.Industry advisors
Arctial’s network of industry advisors consists of executives with strong track record of working in areas such as aluminium and other metals, minerals, business strategy and development, and sales.
Tom Niemi
Ab Marsuppium Oy, a company active in advising in mining, metals and energy industries lead by Tom Niemi who has almost 50 years of experience in metallurgy and base metals as well as strong industry experience in production and management. During his career, he worked with Outokumpu as MD of the cobalt business and in M&A and later as Deputy CEO of New Boliden and has been on the board of several international and Finnish mining and metal companies. He was the Chairman of the Finnish Geological Survey, Euromines, Raw Materials Group as well as Finland’s Member of the EU Steering Group on Raw Materials. Tom holds a Master of Science in Engineering from Åbo Akademi. Joni Lukkaroinen
Karnac Oy is a management consultancy company, and its CEO Joni Lukkaroinen is an experienced leader in the process industry and commodity markets. Among other things, he has served as CEO of Terrafame, CEO of Extron-Mecanor Group and CEO of Kronochem Group, and he is currently Chairman of Laania, Chairman of Extron-Mecanor Group and a Board Member at Sotkamo Silver. Joni holds a Master of Science in Engineering from Helsinki University of Technology.Jerome Lucaes
Fast Forward Zero help industrial businesses adapt to the net zero carbon and circular economy. FFZero is led by Jerome Lucaes, who has 25 years of experience in the aluminium sector. Jerome has worked at several companies, including Rio Tinto, RUSAL, and Constellium (formerly Alcan). He has spearheaded numerous transformative projects, including: Co-founding the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), co-leading the first net zero carbon strategy for a global mining & metals company, establishing commercial and sustainability partnerships in the industry. Jerome is also senior advisor to International Aluminium Institute (IAI).
Dennis Rueckemesser
STR consultant Dennis is a project development professional with 25 years of experience. He has delivered multidisciplinary resource industry projects of more than $1 billion and managed teams of up to 300 people. Past employers included Rio Tinto, SNC-Lavalin and Bateman. Dennis holds a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Cape Town and an MBA from ESCP Business School.Stephan Broek
Kensington Technology Inc., a consulting firm active in advising clients in the primary aluminium industry that is led by Stephan Broek. Stephan is KTI's lead advisor to Arctial and has over 30 years of industrial experience in Energy, Iron & Steel and Aluminium sectors . In primary aluminium smelting, the focus is on environmental technology applications, transfer and development. He is highly experienced in planning, implementation and operations of industrial projects with a strong focus on the core technologies. Stephan is a graduate of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences in Chemical Engineering (1991).
Jean-Francois Riverin
STR consultant Jean-Francois brings over 30 years of experience in the aluminium industry, specialising in both operational and project environments. He has played a key role in the operational readiness, commissioning, and start-up of more than 5 million tonnes of primary aluminium smelter capacity. Jean-Francois holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from the Royal Military College of Canada and a Master's degree in Chemical Engineering.Lena Korkea-aho
Lumocon helps businesses with sustainability strategies and environmental management. The company's founder is Lena Korkea-aho, who has over 20 years of experience in international environmental consulting and sustainable finance. Her previous employers include URS (now AECOM), Ramboll Environ, and the Nordic Investment Bank. Lena has worked on environmental and sustainability challenges across various industrial sectors, including metal, oil & gas, chemical, and forest industries. She holds a Master's degree in Agricultural and Forestry Sciences from the University of Helsinki, with a major in soil and environmental chemistry.Backed by leading partners with industry and technology expertise
Arctial has a partner-driven approach that provides access to leading technology, key input factors and highly relevant industrial expertise, enabling the project company to effectively assess this opportunity. ABB, Fortum, Mitsubishi Corporation, Rio Tinto, Siemens Financial Services, Tesi, and Vargas are financing the project company and the feasibility study.
Rio Tinto’s initial contribution includes access to its industry-leading AP60 technology, which is among the most efficient aluminium technology currently available at commercial scale. Fortum will support in long-term hedging strategies related to the potential facility and electricity sourcing from both existing and new generation assets. Arctial has also signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Finland’s transmission system operator Fingrid to secure grid connection for the project.
Join our team
During the feasibility study, Arctial seeks experts and personnel with experience in areas such as engineering, construction, metallurgy, environment and administration. Is that you? Reach out to career@arctial.com.
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