Aluminium manufacturers are facing a challenge that extends across the entire production chain: improving output and product quality while making better use of raw materials, energy and existing equipment. From recovering metal from complex scrap to controlling billet solidification and achieving precision in rolled products, every stage presents technical demands that influence the efficiency and economics of the final operation. Addressing these demands requires more than conventional machinery. Equipment manufacturers are developing specialised technologies to tackle problems such as low scrap recovery, surface segregation, casting defects, unnecessary metal removal and inconsistent strip flatness. Increasingly, the focus is on improving process control, reducing production losses and...
Vedanta Aluminium Metal Ltd is turning to captive bauxite supplies to manage rising raw material costs as a pricing dispute with its long-term supplier, Odisha Mining Corporation Ltd (OMCL), puts pressure on its procurement expenses. The company plans to begin production at its Sijimali bauxite mine in Odisha during the current financial year, targeting an initial output of 1 million tonnes. Vedanta received long-pending consent to operate the mine in September. Production is expected to increase to 5–6 million tonnes in FY28, with the captive resource anticipated to replace imported bauxite and reduce the company's dependence on external suppliers. The mine is expected to generate savings of approximately USD 25 per tonne, according to chief financial officer Anup Agarwal, who discussed...
Grow with
AL Circle
The US dollar rose on Wednesday. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies, rebounded 0.71% to end at 99.573. Overnight, LME base metals failed to hold onto gains from Tuesday. LME aluminium fell 0.2% while SHFE aluminium jumped 1.5%. Three-month LME aluminium relinquished early gains after a strengthened SHFE aluminium lifted it to a session high of US$1,529 per tonne. It closed at US$1,516 per tonne, down 0.2% on the day. Shanghai Metals Market expects the contract to trade at US$1,490-1,520 per tonne today. As of Wednesday, April 15, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stands at US$ 1469.50per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 1469.50 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 1507.50 per tonne, 3-months offer price is US$ 1507.50...
A00 aluminium ingot price has extended growth today, on April 16, for the sixth day in a row to touch the level of RMB 12,000 per tonne, learned Shanghai Metals Market. Yesterday, the price was RMB 11,910 per tonne, which represents that today it has increased by RMB 90 per tonne. The average prices are expected to range between RMB 11,980 per tonne and RMB 12,020 per tonne, with spot contract to be still traded at a discount and premium price of RMB 30 per tonne to RMB 10 per tonne. Wuxi has seen the highest growth of RMB 120 per tonne to RMB 12,010 per tonne, followed by the growth of RMB 115 per tonne in Hangzhou to stand at RMB 12,030 per tonne. In Gongyi, the price has increased by RMB 105 per tonne to RMB 12,035 per tonne and that in Foshan, Chongqing, and Linyi by RMB 100 per tonne...
The Missouri based Beckwood Press Company, a leading manufacturer of custom hydraulic and servo-electric presses, automation systems, and precision aerospace forming equipment, has secured a deal from H&R Parts Company to manufacture a 200-ton Triform sheet stretch forming machine. The machine is designed for stretch forming of aerospace and defence parts made from aluminium sheets up to 3/16-in. thick and 114-in. wide. This machine will feature 40-in. of stroke with a 12-in. x 100-in. mounting table that includes +/-15-degree tilt. The jaws will travel horizontally to allow for a maximum distance of 72-in. and a minimum distance of 18-in. between them. The segmented jaws provide 6,000lbf/inch and will allow for clamping of a wide range of sheet sizes. H&R Parts Co. 2018 installed a...
MRT, the die-casting company based in Hampshire is enhancing its production space by around 50% and opening a new foundry with the help of the MTC. A team from the MTC’s manufacturing support services operation worked with managers and operators from Queens Award-winning die-casting supplier MRT Castings, supporting the organization with the layout of its new facility, automation, and technology selection and robotic handling. Established in 1947, MRT delivers aluminium die-castings and machine components to leading companies across the UK and Europe from its factory. MRT reached MTC to get support for the planning of their new 20,000 square feet foundry, designed to accommodate the modern technology and enhance productivity while at the same time providing a first-class manufacturing...
The businesses in the USA are opening slowly amid COVID-19, though lacks in liquidity. The President of Norwegian Aluminium maker Norsk Hydro’s North American extrusion unit, Charlie Straface has been assembling a COVID-19 task force every other day to draw up the cost-cutting measures to balance the reducing revenues and also to protect the unit’s cash balance economic plunge related to the epidemic. Straface said: “Things are changing day-to-day. We have to anticipate everything that could go wrong relative to our cash-flow situation”. Straface also added: “My unit, headquartered in Illinois, has already furloughed employees and slashed operating expenses. The cash balance looks positive for six months.” At Hydro’s North American extrusion unit, the plunging of revenues has augmented...
Hydro has announced that Norway-based outdoor furniture manufacturer Vestre will use Hydro CIRCAL in their sought-after furniture series, Folk. CIRCAL is a certified alloy with a minimum content of 75 percent post-consumer recycled aluminium. Using advanced sorting technology, aluminium from end-of-life windows, cans, doors and car parts are used to make high-quality recycled aluminium. “In a fairly short time, Hydro CIRCAL has become a key part of our product portfolio, with increased demand from customers and various industries,” said Egil Hogna, Executive Vice President for Hydro’s Extruded Solutions business. “We have already established a strong presence in the building and construction sector and will continue to focus on expanding our product reach. With Hydro CIRCAL, we provide...
FYI Resources Limited has reportedly taken necessary measures to ensure safety and wellbeing of its staff and to preserve shareholder funds during the COVID19 crisis. At the same time, it is maintaining positive progress at its high purity alumina (HPA) project in Western Australia. As per the report, all non-executive directors of the company have agreed to suspend payment in cash of their director fees, while the managing director has agreed to suspend his salary, with effect from March 1, to save the company's cost. Besides, corporate overheads have been reduced and lower priority expenditure, such as non-essential research and development activities, has been curtailed to execute operations seamlessly. On the other hand, management staff and project contractors have adjusted their...
In addition to the New Zealand Aluminium Smelter (NZAS) at Tiwai Point, Rio Tinto’s other aluminium laboratories such as its Tasmania’s Bell Bay site, the Yarwun refinery in Gladstone have all become the temporary hand sanitiser development hotspots. The mining giant aims to ease the demand for hand sanitiser products during the COVID19 pandemic, as well as to help prevent the spread among its own staff. With such aims, Rio Tinto Aluminium has transformed its laboratory spaces in Australia and New Zealand into spaces for chemists and researchers to develop sanitiser. The laboratories are making the sanitiser by following the World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, ensuring the utmost safety and cleanliness. While it’s been already reported that the NZAS team has produced 103 litres of...
The US export of Aluminium Plates, Sheets, Bars, etc. to Mexico has remained sluggish as the export market reflected fall. The total export volume to Mexico during September’19 - December’19 stood at 106,000 tonnes and when the January’20 export volume added it stands at 132,100 tonnes. In September’19 the US export of Aluminium Plates, Sheets, Bars, etc. to Mexico was recorded at 29,000 tonnes, whereas in October’19 the export stood at 29,900, a growth by 3.10% and the M-o-M excess volume stood at 900 tonnes only. The US export of Aluminium Plates, Sheets, Bars, etc. towards Mexico during November’19 recorded a fall by 14.71%, as the total export volume stood at 25,400 tonnes and the M-o-M drop in volume stood at 4,400 tonnes. In December’19 the US export to Mexico saw a further drop by...
Metro Mining Ltd announced that the first ship for 2020 has arrived at Skardon River. The ship, Vialli, commenced loading on the morning of 14 April. This shipment is the first this year to foundation customer Xinfa who will purchase approximately 2.0 Million DMT (dry metric tonnes) under existing offtake arrangements in 2020. Metro Mining Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Simon Finnis, said: “This has been an excellent start to the year in trying times amidst all the operational changes we have had to implement to deal with the risk of Covid-19.” “To put the results into context, last year we only had 47,000 WMT mined and hauled prior to the commencement of shiploading activities. Our workforce has had to make adjustments to their working lives, including some who have...
On Tuesday, April 14, China’s State Grid announced to invest RMB 2.7 billion in total to construct charging piles. It said it plans to build 78,000 charging piles in 2020, which is 10 times more than the addition last year. The state-owned electric utility giant also announced that it would kick off construction of 126 charging pile projects across 18 Chinese provinces and cities to facilitate the development of electric vehicle charging network. This will require a total investment of RMB 360 million. China’s wholesale deliveries of new energy passenger vehicles almost quadrupled in March from the previous month and stood at 56,000 units, according to the data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) last week. Among this, wholesale volumes of plug-in hybrid vehicles accounted for...
Hydro has announced the re-opening of recycling plants and extrusion plants amid coronavirus to fulfill backlog and meet customer demand in different segments. Recyclers Azuqueca in Spain, Lucé in France, Rackwitz in Germany and Deeside in UK restarted this week after being temporarily closed. “US recyclers Henderson and Commerce operating at reduced capacity-utilization in response to falling demand and government-imposed restrictions,” Hydro said. Around 30 percent of the extrusion sites are running at approximately normal levels, around 50 percent are running at reduced levels and around 20 percent are either closed or running at very low levels. Hydro said several plants have or will re-open to serve customers in various segments. The Energy segment and Bauxite & Alumina segment are...
Novelis Inc., the world leader in aluminium rolling and recycling, announced on April 14 that it completed the acquisition of Aleris Corporation, a global supplier of rolled aluminium products. Thus, Novelis is now better positioned to meet customers’ demand for aluminium, with a wider product portfolio, skilled and diverse workforce, and higher commitment towards safety, sustainability, quality, and partnership. In regards to the acquisition, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman Aditya Birla Group and Novelis Inc., said: "The Aleris deal marks a major milestone for Novelis, on its path to global leadership. The closure of this deal amidst challenging market conditions, reflects our conviction in the Aleris business and its value to our metals portfolio. Periods of turmoil have historically...
The average spot alumina price in China has dropped by RMB 9 per tonne or 0.43 per cent on Wednesday, 15 April 2020, after a decline of RMB 6 per tonne on Tuesday. The price now stands at RMB 2064 per tonne today. The alumina prices in China have decreased in East and Central markets. The average prices of Alumina-East and Alumina-Central have reduced by RMB 35 per tonne and RMB 15 per tonne to stand at RMB 2065 per tonne and RMB 2075 per tonne. Their average prices are expected to range at RMB 2050-2080 per tonne and RMB 2060-2090 per tonne. The price in North and South remain unchanged at RMB 2050 per tonne and RMB 2520 per tonne. A00 aluminium ingot price has increased by RMB 100 per tonne from its earlier price of RMB 11810 per tonne. The price now stands at RMB 11910 per tonne. The...
Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), one of the leading producers of diversified natural resources, has declared on 14 th April’20, to shut down one of its bauxite mines for three months. The bauxite mine has been the supply feedstock to its alumina plant in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan. Eurasian Resources Group said in a statement: “The Torgai mining division accounts for 3.4% of the plant’s bauxite supply.” <iframe width="500" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Cim132RgW10" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> ERG also added: “The move was a result of a decline in the prices of alumina and aluminium.” The Pavlodar alumina plant of ERG produces 1.5 million tonnes of alumina per year. Then the alumina...
The US dollar declined on Tuesday as risk appetite returned to the market after the better-than-expected economic data from China dispelled some concerns about the coronavirus impact on the world’s second-largest economy. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies, eased 0.63% and ended at 98.875. Three-month LME aluminium rebounded after the decline, closing up 2.09 per cent higher on the day at US$ 1,515 per tonne with short covering their positions. The most-traded SHFE contract has increased to a more than three-week high, with the trading range expected between RMB 11,600 per tonne and RMB 11,850 per tonne today. As of Tuesday, April 14, both LME aluminium cash (bid) price and LME official settlement price stood at US$ 1456 per tonne, after...
The flagship version of Audi’s A8 L W12 model and available only as a special order – depending on market is set to be the last application of the German manufacturer’s magnificent four-bank 12-cylinder engine, as it focuses on downsizing and efficiency. The model resembles ultra-smoothness and abundant is as indulgent in its delivery and ability, the A8 L W12 is similarly the lost luxurious version on offer, and – as driven – featured nearly the full gamut of Audi’s high tech systems developed for to outdo the competition in a technologically ever-escalating large luxury car segment. Audi builds the flagship model with lightweight aluminium-intensive construction and 24% stiffer than its predecessor for improved handling, comfort and collision safety, the A8’s most impressive feature is,...
China’s environmental authorities on April 10 reportedly issued the fifth batch of aluminium scrap import quotas for 2020 to allow additional 191,100 tonnes of high-grade aluminium scrap to enter China. With this, the total aluminium scrap imports allowed to China at present is 475,600 tonnes. China, in the first two months of the year, imported 122,000 tonnes of aluminium scrap in total, down 40.7 per cent from a year earlier, according to customs data. This suggests that a large amount of import quotas has remained unused. According to China Customs data, China, during January-April 2019, had imported 490,000 tonnes of seaborne aluminium scrap. The import quotas for this year are so far sufficient in volumes, but the supply in Chinese market is unlikely to increase soon due to subdued...
