Aluminum casthouses are facing a growing operational challenge of increasing the use of recycled metal without compromising melt quality, recovery rates or production efficiency. As manufacturers look to incorporate more post-consumer recycled (PCR) aluminum, processing lightweight scrap, machining chips and other low-density materials has become increasingly important. Such materials are difficult to introduce into conventional melting furnaces, making efficient scrap feeding and submergence essential to improving recycling performance. The challenge extends beyond scrap preparation. Maintaining consistent temperature and chemical composition throughout the molten metal bath is critical to producing specification-compliant aluminum. Equipment used for circulation and stirring must...
ClearFlow Metalworks plans to invest $28 million in a new aluminum manufacturing facility in Russellville, Kentucky, marking an expansion of secondary aluminum production in the United States. The project is expected to create 50 full-time jobs, with its first phase designed to deliver an estimated annual production capacity of approximately 100,000 tons. The company, which focuses on sustainable aluminum recycling and production, will develop the facility in phases. Phase I will feature a secondary aluminum billet casting operation, processing recycled aluminum materials into billets for extrusion and other downstream manufacturing applications. The project will establish ClearFlow's manufacturing presence in the U.S. and support domestic demand for aluminum products while expanding...
Grow with
AL Circle
The automobile market in China continued to inch up in May 2020, as found by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). Sales rose 11.7 per cent year-on-year to come in at 2.14 million tonnes, according to the flash estimate by CAAM. Month-on-month, the sales in May recorded an increase of 3.2 per cent, as the total units sold in April were 2.07 million, registering a year-on-year increase of 4.4 per cent, the first rise in 22 months. Month-on-month, the growth in April was by 39.8 per cent. In March, automobiles sales in China recovered significantly from a month ago and stood at 1.43 million units, rising 361.1%. In the first five months of 2020, China’s car sales are estimated to reach 7.9 million units, down 23.1 per cent from the corresponding period last year. In the...
RUSAL one of the leading global aluminium producers declares the conclusion of the book-building process for the new placement of its 10-year ruble-denominated bonds with a three year put option on the Moscow Exchange, the nominal value of 10 billion rubles and a coupon rate of 6.5% per annum, a record low for the Company. During the book building, the coupon rate guidance was lowered twice from the initial 6.55-6.75% range with the final coupon rate fixed at 6.5%. The new rate transcended the record low bond rate set by RUSAL last year and became the lowest bond rate in the history of the Company’s placements. Oleg Mukhamedshin, RUSAL’s Director for Strategy, Business Development and Financial Markets said: “The successful issue of our ruble bonds coupled with the interest from the...
According to Shanghai Metals Market, the average alumina spot price has recorded a hike of RMB 16 per tonne or 0.72 per cent to stand at RMB 2,236 per tonne, as of Wednesday, June 3. The price in the central has registered the highest growth of RMB 25 per tonne to stand at RMB 2,240 per tonne, while that in the north has grown by RMB 15 per tonne to hover at RMB 2,240 per tonne. In the east and south, the alumina price has, however, recorded no change from RMB 2,215 per tonne and RMB 2,520 per tonne, respectively. The imported alumina price and also the Australian alumina FOB price have remained restrained on June 3 at RMB 2,190 per tonne and US$ 250 per tonne, found SMM. The A00 aluminium ingot price, on the other hand, has continued to drop, according to SMM data. The price today is...
Aluminium producer Rusal is seeing a 70-80 per cent cut in demand from customers, after the market slowed down in April due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The news came after Roman Andryushin, Rusal’s head of sales and marketing, told Reuters that its customers are returning with 20-30 per cent of their usual demand. Rusal, the world’s largest aluminium producer outside China, has been dealing with a drop in demand for the metal from some of its major consumers, primarily from car and aviation industries. But the second quarter of 2020 is likely to be the worst of the crisis. Andryushin estimates that the second quarter of 2020 to be even worse than the fourth quarter of 2008 when the purchase sentiment on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was at the lowest due to the global financial crisis....
The Aluminium Center Foundation on 1 st April’20 has integrated into a new sector group under Koninklijke Metaalunie. A new name has been set up for this new initiative: the Dutch Aluminum Association (DAA), the organization for the aluminium industry in the Netherlands. At the start, the new sector group had ten members: Almet Benelux, Aludex , Aluminium Service Breukelen , Bersselaar Constructie , Garfield , Gové, Highrise , Norsk Hydro , Melis Gietschappen and Willems Boven-Leeuwen . They welcomed two new members this week at the very first member meeting, which took place online: Comhan Holland Aluminium and Marteq . The DAA aims to represent the collective interests of the chain of aluminium-producing, trading and processing companies and their specific suppliers. The first members'...
North America’s primary aluminium production stood 4.72 per cent higher year-on-year to 333,000 tonnes in April 2020. On a month on month basis, the output declined by 2.62 per cent from March production of 342,000 tonnes. In the first four months of 2020, the production stood 4.27 per cent higher than the same period last year. The output amounted to 1.319 million tonnes, from 1.265 million tonnes in the first four months of 2019, according to the latest data showed by the International Aluminium Institute (IAI). In 2019, the output stood at 3.809 million tonnes, an increase of 0.93 per cent from 3.774 million tonnes in 2018. Primary aluminium production in South America decreased by 12.35 per cent year-on-year and 21.98 per cent month-on-month to 71,000 tonnes in April. The output of...
According to Crisil analysis, the COVID-19 induced lockdown has had a little impact on Vedanta’s operations. An increase in exports during the lockdown, supported by the company’s low-cost position in key businesses, has offset the sluggish domestic demand, showed Crisil. However, disruptions in supply chain and decrease in sales volume that Vedanta has faced on account of the prolonged global pandemic shall be monitored, added Crisil. According to the report, Vedanta is expected to adopt cash preservation measures by reducing capital expenditure (CAPEX) and limiting dividend payout in the financial year 2021 to address liquidity concerns. The company has also reportedly availed moratorium on its term debt obligation as per RBI guidelines after approval from respective banks to preserve...
The economy of Romania is a fast developing, upper middle income mixed economy with a very high Human Development Index and a skilled labour force, ranked 15th in the European Union by total nominal GDP and 10th largest when adjusted by purchasing power parity. Major industries in Romania are precision machinery, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, electric goods, food, fashion, clothing, petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining and defence. The aluminium alloy importation of Romania during 2017-19 was recorded at 212,908 tonnes as volume and the expenditure occurred stood at $362.47 million. The projected import volume for 2020 has also been analysed with growth as the volume of import...
ProfilGruppen Extrusions AB has joined Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) as a new Production & Transformation member. This brings the total number of members working toward a responsible aluminium value chain to 124. “The desire to make progress every day is an important attitude at ProfilGruppen. We want to grow and develop and be as strong as possible – for many years to come. This requires us to be concerned about the long-term future not just of our business but also of the world around us. To show all our stakeholders that we want to elevate this to the next step, we have chosen to join ASI,” said CEO Mr Fredrik Zöögling, Swedish company ProfilGruppen manufactures customized aluminium extrusions and components. The Group, which employs 450 people, is located in Åseda. The...
According to a recent survey, commodity investors are rushing to make profit from a surplus supply of aluminium. They are buying the metal to store and sell it for future delivery when millions of tonnes of lightweight metal are being produced across the world. As smelters are continuing to produce aluminium, despite the sluggish demand from carmakers and other industrial consumers, their stocks are increasing, resulting in price fall. This is allowing commodity traders, hedge funds, and banks to make so-called financing trades, whereby they buy the metal at low cost, store it in warehouses, and sell it in the futures market. “One of the best risk-free trades in the world at the moment is to get some aluminium and stick it in a warehouse,” said Eoin Dinsmore of CRU, a consultancy. “It’s...
Hindalco Industries Ltd has cut prices of its aluminium ingots, billets and wire rods by 2% after hiking them for the third time in a row. With effect from June 1, the price for Hindalco aluminium ingots now stands at INR 133,000 per tonne, a decrease of 2.03% or INR 2,750 per tonne from INR 135,750 per tonne on May 30. With the latest cut, Hindalco wire rods and billets price has declined by 1.87% or INR 2,750 per tonne and 1.93% or INR 2,750 per tonne from May 30 to stand at INR 144,100 per tonne and INR 140,100 per tonne. The Indian aluminium producers generally link prices of its products to the three-month futures of aluminium on London Metal Exchange. The three-month futures of aluminium are down nearly 16% so far in 2020 due to slower global demand following the coronavirus...
Egil Hogna, Executive Vice President for the Extruded Solutions business area in Hydro, has decided to leave. Hydro Extruded Solutions is a manufacturer of extruded aluminium profiles. Egil is likely to take over as CEO for Norconsult, a Norwegian consultancy firm. The process to find a new leader for the Extruded Solutions business area has started. Hogna will continue as executive vice president until a new leader is in place, until 1 st December’20, at the latest. Hilde Merete Aasheim, President and CEO, Hydro: “Egil Hogna has played a vital role for Hydro as head of Extruded Solutions, demonstrating strong leadership skills, and taking firm actions to position the business for the future.”
A00 aluminium ingot price dropped by RMB 80 per tonne or 0.59 per cent from Monday’s price of RMB 13480 per tonne, after three days of increase. The price now stood at RMB 13400 per tonne today and is expected to move within a range of RMB 13380-13420 per tonne. Spot aluminium contract is likely to be traded at a premium of RMB 90-130 per tonne. In Foshan and Wuxi, the price reduced by RMB 120 per tonne and RMB 65 per tonne to stand at RMB 13430 per tonne and 13405 per tonne. Their average prices are expected to range within RMB 13410-13450 per tonne and RMB 13400-13410 per tonne. Aluminium prices in Hangzhou and Chongqing came in at RMB 13420 per tonne and 13430 per tonne, down RMB 70 per tonne and RMB 90 per tonne. Aluminium ingot prices in Shenyang, Tianjin, Linyi, and Gongyi decreased...
The Romanian beer brand Albacher is receiving benefit from Multi-Color’s aluminium foil can lid label. The design of the label secures that the beer is clean at the moment a buyer selects it from the shelf. The hygienic lid keeps the top of the can clean and protects from dust and germs. Consumers can be assured to relish their beer with maximum safety and hygiene. Mihaela Draghici, PR Director, Romaqua Group said: “Romaqua Group and Multi-Color Corporation have been business partners since 2008 when we launched Albacher beer, and we opened the beer plant in Lancrăm. The green-field project and the eagerness to produce a premium beer in one of the most modern breweries in the world, inevitably has led to our purpose to also have reliable and highly professional partners.” “Moreover,...
The US dollar fell against a basket of rivals for a fifth straight trading day on Monday as risk sentiment improved on optimism that the worst of the economic downturn caused by the global spread of the coronavirus may be in the past. Three-month LME aluminium pulled back from two-month highs on Monday, easing 0.58 per cent to US$ 1,538 per tonne. As of Monday, June 1, LME aluminium cash (bid) price and LME official settlement price stood at US$ 1511.50 per tonne after declining by US$ 3.5 per tonne from the previous day. But 3-months bid price and 3-months offer price increased by US$ 3.5 per tonne to hover at US$ 1540 per tonne. Dec 21 bid price and Dec 21 offer price grew as well by US$ 6.5 per tonne to come in at US$ 1654 per tonne. The LME aluminium opening stock stood at 1496050...
At its Die Casting Technology centre in Germany, toolmaker Heck + Becker carries out casting tests for tool acceptance testing and fine-tuning innovative casting processes. It does this with the help of a fully automated die casting cell with a clamping force of 3,200 tonnes. Around 150 tonnes of aluminium, a year are processed here in small batches that are up to 3,000 parts. The company purchased a new melting furnace for this die casting unit in 2019, with keeping the top priority of improved energy efficiency and increased melting capacity. Previously, a natural gas-fired furnace had been used for melting and an electrode furnace for holding, which together kept the aluminium at a temperature of about 670 °C around the clock. As well as high energy consumption, the gas-fired furnace...
The aluminium extrusions market in Sri Lanka is anticipated to drop 40 per cent, owing to the hit on the property sector by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Lanka Aluminium Industries Plc in a stock exchange filing. “We expect the market size for aluminium extrusions by approximately 40 percent and remain so until a permanent solution for Coronavirus is found,” said the company. Lanka Aluminium closed its factories due to curfews on March 19, and since then the sales slowed down. The company reported that there were, in fact, no sales in April and May. However, on May 11, production recommenced at some of the factories with restricted staff. Dealers around the company also re-opened but reported lower demand and sales. In the March 2020 quarter, Lanka Aluminium generated revenues of 397...
The World’s Greenest battery maker Northvolt and the Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company Norsk Hydro are joining hands to recycle batteries from Norway’s hundreds of thousands of electric cars as part of Europe’s effort to build a green battery industry to take on Tesla and Asian rivals. The Swedish battery maker in 2019 raised more than €1billion from the likes of Volkswagen, Goldman Sachs and Ikea. The Norwegian aluminium company will open an NKr100m ($10m) recycling hub in the south-eastern Norwegian town of Frederikstad by 2021. Arvid Moss, Head of Hydro’s energy business “We believe we can be a frontrunner.” Emma Nehrenheim, CFO, Northvolt said: “With electric car sales set for hockey-stick growth soon, there’s going to be a similar trend in the recycling market a few...
