Amazon Tests Lower-Carbon Aluminum in Ohio Data Center Build

Amazon’s Ohio data center is testing whether lower-carbon aluminum can move from a sustainability pilot to a standard procurement choice.

Amazon is preparing to use aluminum produced with ELYSIS technology in electrical cabling at a data center near Columbus, Ohio, putting a lower-carbon material into a part of the facility that rarely gets much attention outside engineering teams.

Prysmian, Rio Tinto and Amazon say the project represents the first known use of aluminum produced through inert-anode smelting in a data center. Prysmian will manufacture the finished electrical cables at its Sedalia, Missouri, facility, while Wesco will support distribution to the project.

The installation is relatively narrow in scope, but the procurement question behind it is much bigger. As hyperscale data center operators expand cloud and AI infrastructure, emissions tied to construction materials, equipment and supply chains are becoming harder to separate from corporate decarbonization targets.

For developers, aluminum, steel, concrete, cable and electrical equipment are increasingly part of the Scope 3 equation. The challenge is no longer simply finding a material with a lower emissions profile. It is determining whether that material can meet technical requirements, arrive on schedule and compete commercially with conventional alternatives.

Data Center Scope 3 Targets Move Into the Supply Chain

Traditional aluminum smelting relies on carbon anodes. ELYSIS replaces those consumable carbon anodes with inert anodes, eliminating direct greenhouse gas emissions from the smelting process and producing oxygen instead, according to the companies involved.

The aluminum destined for the Prysmian cables was produced in Quebec using hydropower and includes material manufactured with the ELYSIS process.

That production method matters because a significant share of aluminum’s emissions can be generated before the material reaches a construction project. As data center operators look beyond operational electricity use, the carbon associated with raw materials and manufactured equipment is receiving more scrutiny.

AWS has set a goal of reaching net-zero carbon across its operations by 2040. Meeting targets of that kind requires operators to address emissions outside their direct operational control, including purchased goods, equipment and construction.

The Ohio project also shows how many companies have to coordinate before a lower-carbon material can make it onto a data center site.

Rio Tinto supplies the aluminum, Prysmian turns it into electrical cable, Wesco supports distribution and Amazon provides the end-market demand. Each stage has its own requirements around cost, specifications, availability and logistics.

That makes materials decarbonization as much a supply-chain issue as a technology issue.

Lower-Carbon Materials Still Face a Data Center Scaling Test

Getting a new material into one project is different from making it a routine procurement specification.

Data center construction is growing alongside demand for AI and cloud computing, increasing pressure on already constrained categories such as transformers, switchgear, cable and other electrical infrastructure. Long lead times can leave developers with limited room to prioritize a lower-carbon option if it introduces additional cost or supply risk.

The Ohio installation provides a commercial example of inert-anode aluminum moving through an established manufacturing and distribution chain. What it does not yet show is how easily that model can scale.

The companies have not disclosed how much ELYSIS aluminum will be used, whether the material carries a price premium or how the lifecycle emissions of the resulting cable compare with conventionally produced alternatives.

Those details will matter as procurement teams evaluate lower-carbon products. Buyers need to know whether emissions claims apply only to a particular manufacturing stage or reflect a broader lifecycle assessment. They also need comparable carbon data alongside familiar criteria such as price, performance, lead times and product availability.

Prysmian has set a target for sustainability-linked solutions to account for 55% of its revenue by 2028, while Rio Tinto is using projects such as the Amazon installation to demonstrate potential commercial applications for lower-emissions aluminum production.

The bigger test will be whether these materials can move beyond individual deployments.

If producers can supply lower-carbon aluminum in sufficient volumes and manufacturers can integrate it without disrupting cost or delivery schedules, embodied carbon could become a more common requirement in data center procurement contracts.