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Ravenswood impairment
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2016
Asset Impairment Charges [Abstract]  
Ravenswood impairment
Ravenswood impairment

On July 27, 2015, we announced the immediate and permanent closure of our Ravenswood, West Virginia aluminum smelter ("Ravenswood"). Ravenswood has been idled since February 2009. The decision to permanently close Ravenswood was based on the inability to secure a competitive power contract for the smelter, compounded by challenging aluminum market conditions largely driven by increased exports of aluminum from China.

At June 30, 2015, we recorded an impairment charge of $30,850 related to Ravenswood. Based on a tentative agreement for the sale of the assets, we recorded an additional impairment charge of $3,830, included in Ravenswood charges in the consolidated statements of operations for the quarter ended September 30, 2016.

We classified the estimated salvage value of the property, plant and equipment within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy as its fair value was determined based on recent comparable transactions with inputs that are not readily observable in the market.