German aluminum producer TRIMET is interested to purchase St. Jean-de-Maurienne aluminum smelter and Castelsarrasin casting facility in France, which are both owned by Rio Tinto Alcan.

This was confirmed by Jacynthe Côté, CEO of Rio Tinto Alcan, who said they received a binding offer from TRIMET. However, he refrained from disclosing the details of the offer pending a meeting with the board and the regulatory agencies.

St. Jean-de-Maurienne shipped out 93,000 tons of primary metal in 2012. During the same period, the Castelsarrassin also produced 8,000 tons of aluminum wire for mechanical applications, company disclosures state. Both companies employ a total of over 500 workers.

Rio Tinto Alcan is seriously considering the binding offer since this is in line with the company's overall strategy to streamline its operations by divesting the non-core assets.

As Côté explained, "This is an important step towards the contemplated divestment of the St. Jean-de-Maurienne and Castelsarrasin assets.