Norsk Hydro ASA (Hydro; Oslo, Norway; www.hydro.com) announced earlier this week that it was the victim of an extensive cyber-attack, which impacted operations in several of the company’s business areas.
IT systems in most business areas were impacted. Hydro isolated all plants and operations and switched to manual operations and procedures wherever possible.
Hydro’s technical team, with external support, has succeeded in detecting the root cause of the problems and is currently working to validate the plan and process to restart the company’s IT systems in a safe and sound manner. However, it is still not clear how long it might take restore stable IT operations.
As of Wednesday, March 20, production was running normally at the company’s Energy and Bauxite & Alumina business operations.
In the Primary Metals segment, the plants in Norway are running as normal, with a higher degree of manual operations. There is currently no indication of impact on Primary Metals plants outside of Norway, says the company. The remelters are also running as normal, with high degree of manual operation
In the Extruded Solutions and Rolled Products business unit, the cyber event inhibited the ability to connect to the production systems, causing production challenges and temporary stoppage at several plants.
“I’m pleased to see that we are making progress, and I’m impressed to see how colleagues worldwide are working around the clock with dedication to resolve this demanding situation and ensure safe and sound operations,” says Hydro’s CFO Eivind Kallevik.
“I would also like to complement our external technical partners who have done an important job in supporting our efforts, and also relevant authorities, who handle the issue with the diligence it deserves,” Kallevik says.
Hydro still does not have the full overview of the timeline towards normal operations, and the company says it is still too early to estimate the exact operational and financial impact.
Work to resolve the situation and ensure safe and sound operations remains Hydro’s top priority, with internal and external experts on duty continuously to ensure that all possible efforts are being made.