Choi Min-young Heads KONMA's First Aluminum Committee

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Thursday, 16 July 2026

Choi Min-young, Director of government affairs at Novelis Korea has been elected as the first chair of the Aluminum Committee of Korea Nonferrous Metals Association (KONMA). This election is a clear indication of Choi's expertise in the aluminum industry as well as Novelis Korea's efforts to contribute towards sustainable growth of the Korean aluminum industry.

As per KONMA, the Aluminum Committee created this year is an initiative which aims to improve cooperation within the aluminum value chain along with addressing major concerns of the industry. As a forum for its members, the committee intends to work on sustainable development as well as global competitiveness of Korea nonferrous metals industry.

The Aluminum Committee will act as a platform for formulating policy recommendations, ensuring supply chain security, and allowing the aluminum industry to adapt to the ever-growing international regulation and trading scenario, according to Novelis. Furthermore, this committee will strive to promote the use of recycled aluminum and adopt circular economy policies in order to ensure sustainability while simultaneously enhancing innovation and international competitiveness of the Korean aluminum industry.

Key Highlights:

• Choi Min-young becomes the first Chair of KONMA's Aluminum Committee
• KONMA committee advances aluminum recycling and circular economy goals
• Novelis backs policy reforms to strengthen Korea's aluminum industry

With the increased pressure on nations and industries to attain zero emissions in their operations, aluminum is proving to be a vital metal that is driving sustainable industrial change. Being an alloy that provides strength, lightness, and easy recycling process, it becomes highly significant for the development of clean energy, future mobility, advanced military, aerospace sector, rechargeable batteries, green construction, and modern energy infrastructure. In view of continuously growing demand, aluminum will likely to play a greater role in ensuring sustainable economic development.

Unlike many industrial metals, aluminum can be recycled many times without altering its properties. Aluminum recycling requires about 5 percent of the energy used to produce aluminum from bauxite ore. It results in reduced carbon emissions and production costs. This has made recycling of aluminum one of the priorities in many countries that want to enhance their circular economy.

As per the data shared by Novelis, the collection ratio of aluminum beverage cans in South Korea is an excellent 97 percent; however, only 37 percent of those collected cans get recycled into new cans which clearly indicates plenty of scope for improvement in terms of closed-loop recycling. To overcome this situation, the Aluminum Committee plans to collaborate with relevant authorities and players in the industry to create a superior recycling system, enhance the circulation of aluminum resources, and advocate for policies that favor the use of recycled material.

Novelis is a part of Hindalco Industries Limited, a leading company in aluminium and copper and the metals business of the multinational corporation, the Aditya Birla Group which has its headquarters in Mumbai, India. The company is the leading producer of low-carbon flat-rolled aluminum products and the world’s largest aluminum recycler.