CFAC to shut down Oct. 31

The Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. will shut down operations Oct. 31, a company official announced Wednesday morning.

The shut down will mean the loss of about 88 jobs at the plant.

“We’re hoping this is a temporary condition,” said Haley Beaudry, CFAC external affairs manager.

Beaudry said the company and the Bonneville Power Administration were unable to come to terms on a long-range contract for power.

“But we’re still working on it,” he said.

But even if a contract were signed today, Beaudry said the plant couldn’t keep running because it doesn’t have the raw materials to keep going.

Producing aluminum is a continuous process — the power is never shut off and it needs a constant flow of raw materials.