Asia PR News

TORONTO, Sept. 29 /CNW-AsiaNet/ –

Alcan Inc. (NYSE, TSX: AL) today announced updated long-term targets for
the corporation as a whole and for each of its four Business Groups. The
corporate targets include:

- 15 percent annual growth in operating earnings per share;
- US$2 billion minimum annual cash from operations in 2006
and onward;
- return on capital employed sufficient to cover its cost
of capital by 2008;
- debt to total capital ratio of approximately 35 percent.

Speaking at Alcan’s annual investor conference Travis Engen, President and
Chief Executive Officer, Alcan Inc., said "These targets reflect the
significant changes and accomplishments at Alcan since 2003, as well as our
governing objective of maximizing long-term value." He further added, "They are
also a clear expression of our confidence in, and commitment to, strong future
performance."

Specific targets for 2009 and action plans to achieve them were also
identified for each of the Company’s four Business Groups. For the upstream
businesses, these include achieving first quartile status on the global cost
curve for 50 percent of Bauxite and Alumina production and 55 percent of
Primary Metal production. For the downstream businesses, the targets include
improving Business Group Profit margins on revenues to 10 percent for
Engineered Products and 15 percent for Packaging. The targets reflect Alcan’s
current business plans and economic outlook as well as forward rates for
aluminum and currencies.

"Alcan has been significantly transformed over the last few years," said
Mr. Engen. "We now have in place the business model, management systems and
portfolio structure to deliver increasingly robust earnings, cash flow and
returns. There are terrific opportunities to create value throughout the
Company and we’re very excited about our prospects. These new targets provide a
clear set of markers to measure our progress, and we’ll be reporting regularly
against them in the time ahead," he concluded.

Alcan is a multinational, market-driven company and a global leader in
aluminum and packaging. With world-class operations in primary aluminum,
fabricated aluminum as well as flexible and specialty packaging, aerospace
applications, bauxite mining and alumina processing, today’s Alcan is well
positioned to meet and exceed its customers’ needs for innovative solutions and
service. Alcan employs almost 70,000 people and has operating facilities in 55
countries and regions.

Statements made in this press release, which describe the Company’s or
management’s objectives, projections, estimates, expectations or predictions of
the future may be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of securities
laws. The Company cautions that, by their nature, forward-looking statements
involve risk and uncertainty and that the Company’s actual actions or results
could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking
statements or could affect the extent to which a particular projection is
realized. Important factors which could cause such differences include global
supply and demand conditions for aluminum and other products, aluminum ingot
prices and changes in raw materials’ costs and availability, changes in the
relative value of various currencies, cyclical demand and pricing within the
principal markets for the Company’s products, changes in government
regulations, particularly those affecting environmental, health or safety
compliance, economic developments, relationships with and financial and
operating conditions of customers and suppliers, the effects of integrating
acquired businesses and the ability to attain expected benefits, the Company’s
ability to dispose of assets at the anticipated prices and other factors within
the countries in which the Company operates or sells its products and other
factors relating to the Company’s ongoing operations including, but not limited
to, litigation, labour negotiations and fiscal regimes.

SOURCE: ALCAN INC.

CONTACT: Media Contact: Anik Michaud,
+1-514-848-8151,
media.relations@alcan.com;

Investor Contact: Corey Copeland,
+1-514-848-8368,
investor.relations@alcan.com

(AL. AL)