Key Aspects of Aluminium Value Chain Sustainability in East - Southeast Europe for Red Mud Valorization

Nowadays, at the European scale, a fast-growing need for raw materials is observed. At the same time, the industrial processes implementing the whole raw materials value chain, developed several solutions, aiming at the sector's circular economy initiatives and sustainability reinforcement. In the case of the aluminium industry, there is an increasing need for aluminium products globally, indicating the increasing production trend for this material. Taking into account the principles of circular economy and sustainability that are currently adopted by the European industries, and the European low potential, for instance for rare earth elements, it is important to manage the wastes or by-products generated from the Bayer process. Various studies have been conducted for the valorization of red mud / bauxite residue with significant technological breakthroughs. Nevertheless, the successful valorization of this waste / by-product ought to take into consideration, apart from the technological advances, also the current economic / legislative / environmental / social and other frameworks. For this reason, the current study investigates the abovementioned conditions of four countries in East-Southeast Europe: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Hungary, and Montenegro. Following the review and analysis of countries' status-quo, the major strengths and obstacles to the sustainable utilization of this commodity are presented, using Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats or else SWOT Analysis. According to the evaluation, all four countries present significant potential for red mud / bauxite residue valorization. For the two countries, Greece, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which currently have active aluminium production, long-term valorization solutions appear to be more suitable, while for Montenegro and Hungary, short-term solutions focused on environmental relief could be more appropriate to deal with this emerging issue.