Institution

Alcoa

1888 · 19th century · Also known as Aluminum Company of America

Alcoa, the Aluminum Company of America, is an American aluminium producer founded in Pittsburgh in 1888 to exploit Charles Martin Hall's process for refining aluminium. Through its subsidiary Suralco it mined bauxite in Suriname from the early twentieth century, starting at Moengo, and later built the Paranam smelter powered by the Afobaka Dam, making bauxite the backbone of the Surinamese economy for decades.

Alcoa
Image: Alcoa · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Alcoa. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/alcoa
MLA
“Alcoa.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/alcoa. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Alcoa.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/alcoa.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Alcoa’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/alcoa (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻