The Podgorica Aluminum Plant (KAP), once an industrial giant in Montenegro, now resembles a ghost town, its workforce cut to one-fifth of its former strength. The plant is at the center of a
dispute between the Montenegrin government and KAP's Russian shareholder, which is owned by Kremlin-friendly oligarch Oleg Deripaska. The Russian shareholder is now suing the Montenegrin government over lost profits from the failing plant.
Inside Montenegro's Embattled Aluminum Factory
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Electrolysis cells in the Podgorica Aluminum Plant, or Kombinat Aluminijuma Podgorica (KAP)
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An employee works with the active electrolysis cells.
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Aluminum sprays through an opening in the crust of active electrolysis cells.
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An employee supervises the flow of melted aluminum at the foundry.
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An employee inspects the purity of smelted aluminum.
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Workers take a break outside the foundry.
![A plaque reads: "Second phase, aluminium factory, Titograd [the former name of Podgorica], work started 19.12.1976."](https://gdb.rferl.org/3af54d7e-db1c-420c-98be-04ed22e0a8ab_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A plaque reads: "Second phase, aluminium factory, Titograd [the former name of Podgorica], work started 19.12.1976."
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A crane operator moves ingots in the foundry.
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A truck driver waits for products to be loaded.
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An employee takes a nap in a closed-down hall.
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