Hydro won first place in the award category of raw materials, materials and procedure optimization for the significant improvements that Hydro's new aluminium sheet in alloy type 6-30+ delivers to the efficient construction of aluminium car body parts. Oliver Bell, head of Hydro's Rolled Products business area, accepted the award.

Each year since 2007, the ÖKO-GLOBE institute at the University of Duisburg has awarded innovations that help reduce the environmental impact of mobility. The 2012 list of winners in eight categories includes companies like Ford, Volvo, Renault, Toyota, BMW and Sixt, Johnson Controls, Continental and Volkswagen with DHL.

Jury chairman Professor Ferdinand Dudenhöfer praised the enormous progress in the deep-drawing properties of Hydro's new alloy for aluminium sheets: "It enables carmakers to construct much larger and more complex body parts from one single sheet of aluminium."

At the ceremony, Bell thanked his team for the strong development achievement: "The low-carbon economy can only be made real with the industry. Our new product shows what our industry can contribute and how important it is to keep our supply chains intact. The 6-30+ innovation was only possible thanks to close collaboration of our research and development with the aluminium production, processing and finishing here in the Rhineland region."