Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) has proposed an integrated bauxite mining and processing project worth VND 5.2 trillion (USD 208 million) in Lam Dong province, Vietnam. Currently under appraisal by provincial authorities, it is designed to produce around 3 million tonnes of refined bauxite ore annually, reinforcing raw material requirements at the Nhan Co Aluminium Plant and the planned expansion of its alumina operations. Located in the Nhan Co Cluster, the proposal spans over 6,666 hectares. Of this, approximately 5,269 hectares are earmarked for mining and around 50 hectares for the ore processing plant. The project also includes five post-processing sludge reservoirs covering about 1,120 hectares, alongside the 318-hectare Dak Buk So 8 water reservoir. A...
Aluminium production depends on high-temperature processes where furnace efficiency, thermal management and equipment durability are essential for maintaining operational performance. However, refractory materials used in melting, holding and casting operations face continuous exposure to extreme temperatures, thermal fluctuations, chemical corrosion and mechanical wear. These conditions can lead to premature furnace-lining failure, molten-metal penetration, corundum formation and heat loss, increasing maintenance requirements and operating costs. Addressing these challenges requires materials that can withstand demanding operating conditions while keeping equipment efficient and reliable. Alkegen, a supplier of high-temperature refractory and insulation materials, serves this requirement...
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The US dollar reached a 19-month high against a basket of currencies on Friday, as investors preferred the safety of the world's reserve currency in the wake of political and economic turmoil outside the US. Most LME base metals traded lower on Friday while SHFE base metals ticked higher across the board on Friday night. LME aluminium dropped about 0.2%.while SHFE Aluminium climbed 0.2%. LME aluminium closed Friday’s trading at US$ 1908 per tonne and gained some losses at night trading. The contract however dropped to a low of US$1,918 per tonne on Friday before it recovered some losses to end at US$1,925.5 per tonne. The stronger US dollar is expected to continue to weigh on LME aluminium, which is likely to trade at US$1,915-1,935 per tonne today. As on December 14, Friday, LME...
A bootstrapped Midwest USA builder is reviving the dying art of the pure vintage racing cars which are beautifully handcrafted oner at a time. The all-aluminium body of the Runge RS is a modern masterpiece reminding the curvy bodies of ‘50s-era Ferrari, Maserati, and Jaguar roadsters. Runge is inspired from the Porsche 550 Spyder and Porsche 718 RSK specifically. Inside the stunning polished aluminium exterior, the Runge RS is an all modern machine. The steel tube-frame chassis supports a mid-mounted, air-cooled, flat-four engine pushing 159 horsepower. The two-seat cockpit design looks like time-traveling a complete six decades. The classic racing bucket seats with brown leather trim, and wood-rimmed steering wheel completes the vintage look. The car does not provide any superfluous...
Bauxite industry has witnessed a number of developments last week. Here is a round-up of the most important news stories on the bauxite sector from the week gone by: Construction of EGA’s bauxite mining project reaches 75 per cent The construction of Emirates Global Aluminium’s (EGA) bauxite mining project in the Republic of Guinea has reached almost 75 per cent. Developed by EGA’s subsidiary Guinea Alumina Corp (GAC), the total budget of the project is around US$1.4 billion. The first bauxite export from this project is expected during the second half of 2019. Rio Tinto’s first bauxite shipment arrives in Gladstone The first shipment of bauxite from Rio Tinto’s $2.6 billion Amrun bauxite project in Queensland has arrived at the Port of Gladstone. Rio Tinto Yarwun general manager Mark...
With China’s crack down on inferior quality scrap imports and the steep tariffs on imported scrap from the US, there is a fear of scrap supply glut in the U.S., analysts from CRU Group said. Mike Southwood and Greg Wittbecker, both Pittsburgh-based aluminium industry analysts with CRU Group said so in a webinar hosted by the Aluminum Recyclers Council (ARC), Wauconda, Illinois. Southwood said that China had been the largest consumer of U.S.-generated twitch and zorba in the last decade and the U.S. scrap industry was built up on that with more and more investments, expansions and more suppliers joining the business. When China implemented its Green Fence initiative in 2013 to control inferior quality scrap imports, U.S. exports of aluminium scrap to China dropped 16 per cent and as of...
Sohar Aluminium (SA) recently announced the appointment of Agnello Borim as Chief Operating Officer (COO). In his new capacity, he will be leading the Reduction Operations, Services and Maintenance, Technical Department, Anode Plant, Casthouse, Port and Lab Areas. Borim will also be the custodian of the company’s Productivity Pillar, overseeing the development of the strategies and contributing in driving the overall business strategy of Sohar Aluminium. Borim has 28 years of experience working in large global companies in the metallurgical and mining sector while holding leadership positions such as Vice President and Director in complex industrial facilities that included some of the largest producers of primary Aluminium in the world. These include Alcoa, Saudi Arabian Mining Company...
re3 have launched a new recycling initiative that aims to encourage its residents to recycle aluminium foils trays. The initiative reminds residents that clean aluminium foil trays can now be recycled along with other metal packaging such as clean food and drink cans, tins and empty aerosols. re3 have teamed up with local takeaway outlets to deliver the recycling message to residents of Bracknell Forest, Reading and Wokingham Boroughs. The recycling campaign also involves a chance to win a free takeaway. A joint statement from Reading, Bracknell and Wokingham Council said: “We are thrilled to be able to offer the aluminium foil recycling service at the kerbside and it’s important to promote it to residents of Bracknell Forest, Reading and Wokingham Boroughs. An average household can...
The greenback recovered to 97 in the beginning of this week following its steepest weekly drop in three months last week. US President Donald Trump's upbeat comments on trade talks with China and Beijing's first major purchase of US soybeans in months have cut down on the trade war tensions. LME aluminium continued to trade weakly over the weak despite recovering some losses. The contract saw a trading range of US$ 1908- 1951 per tonne. Though the contract opened higher on Monday, it followed a steady downtrend with the strong US dollar and in absence of strong market fundamentals. LME aluminium contract failed to stand firm above the 10-day moving average with resistance at the 20-day moving average. We expect it to remain weak in the coming week with most transactions within a range of...
Rio Tinto announced it has completed the sale of its Dunkerque aluminium smelter in northern France, Europe’s biggest aluminium producer, to Liberty House for $500 million. In January, Rio Tinto had accepted a purchase offer from UK industrialist Sanjeev Gupta for its Dunkerque aluminium smelter. “Liberty House, which is part of the GFG Alliance (Gupta Family Group), has committed to continuing operations at the smelter and has announced plans for the development of additional activity around the site,” according to Rio Tinto press release. Rio Tinto said the proceeds will be returned to shareholders, with the precise timing and form to be announced with Rio Tinto’s 2018 full year results.
Alumina or aluminium oxide (Al2O3), the key raw material for producing aluminium is a white powder extracted from bauxite through Bayer process. Due to the exponential growth of the aluminium industry in last two decades and the significance of alumina in the upstream value chain, aluminium producers are building their own refineries and expanding the existing facilities to secure the availability of this resource. Driven by a growing demand for aluminium in China, followed by Middle East and India, bauxite production and alumina refining capacity has increased immensely across the major alumina producing regions of the world. The below map from International Aluminium Institute shows YTD alumina production in the world in 2018: Alumina is supplied to the world aluminium smelters from...
Can-One announced that it is planning to buy 2.17 million shares or a 0.49% stake in Kian Joo Can Factory Bhd (KJCFB) from Tan Kim Seng for RM6.71mil or RM3.10 per KJCFB share in cash. This will increase Can-One’s shareholding in Kian Joo to 33.39% from 32.9%, The Star Online reported. In the event the mandatory general offer (MGO) is successfully undertaken, it would result in Kian Joo becoming a subsidiary of Can-One. Can-One expects the proposals to be completed in the first half of 2019, subject to all required approvals. "The proposals are undertaken by Can-One as part of its expansion strategy to consolidate the can manufacturing business under Kian Joo Group to grow its sales and customer base, which will in turn improve the financial performance of Can-One Group," Can-One said....
Hazlemere Commercial has reportedly received a 3rd successive fenestration refurbishment contract, sponsored by the CFBT Schools Trust, to survey, manufacture, and install £168,000 + VAT of replacement double glazed commercial aluminium windows and doors to St. Marks Church of England Academy in Mitcham, in the London Borough of Merton. Earlier in 2018, Hazlemere Commercial had received a £181,000 + VAT refurbishment contract at Queensbury Academy in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, which was also sponsored by the CFBT Schools Trust. The window and door replacement contract at Queensbury Academy involves Hazlemere Commercial manufacturing and installing white powder coated aluminium window and door products including the Sapa DF75 Si casement window system and Sapa ST commercial entrance doors....
China produced 2.82 million tonnes of primary aluminium in November 2018, up 3.9 percent from 2.72 million tonnes in October and up 19.2 percent from November 2017, according to data published by the country’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The total aluminium production in the first eleven months of 2018 stood at 31.45 million tonnes up 7.5 percent year-on-year and on course for an annual record-high, the NBS data showed. On a daily basis, the world’s top aluminium maker produced 94,000 tonnes of aluminium in November, from around 88,000 tonnes in October, according to Reuters calculations. That was the highest daily rate since July. The rise in aluminium production came despite Shanghai aluminium prices falling by 2.8 percent in November and hitting two-year lows, leaving smelters...
Vedanta Ltd raised prices of aluminium ingots by more than 1% with effect from Wednesday Dec 12, making the price of P1020 / EC High purity ingot reach INR 158,758. However, the next day, it cut prices again by almost one per cent effective from December 13. With Wednesday’s hike, rates of these products were at their highest level in nearly a month. However, after the price cut, the price for Vedanta aluminium ingot stands at INR 157,500 (USD 2215) per tonne. The price cut followed nearly 3% increases in prices of these products last week. Even after the price hike today, rates of these products are down 4-5% for the quarter. The three-month future price of aluminium on the London Metal Exchange is down more than 4% for the same period. The three-month aluminium price in London Metal...
According to a report, global demand for aluminium profiles, bars and rods is forecast to expand 5.7 per cent per annum between 2016 and 2020. Currently, aluminium alloy profiles, bars and rods account for 96.0 per cent of the global demand while not alloyed aluminium profiles, bars and rods have a 4.0 per cent market share. {newsStudioGallery} China, Philippines, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States are considered the highest potential markets in the coming years. China, France, Germany, Italy and the United States represent the largest aluminium profile, bar and rod markets while the strongest annual growth is forecast to occur in the United Kingdom (19.6%), Philippines (15.5%), Ukraine (13.7%), Vietnam (9.0%) and China (7.6%). According to the global export-import data,...
Brazilian expert study shows that there was no overflow from Alunorte’s residue deposit areas DRS1 and DRS2 in February 2018. The study also concludes that Alunorte, from a water management perspective, can produce at its nominal capacity of 6.3 million tonnes of alumina a year. Hydro announced through press release on December 13 that “computer simulations carried out by professors from the Federal University of Campina Grande show that there was no overflow from Alunorte’s residue deposit areas in February 2018. “In the study, the researchers simulated scenarios of water storage, pumping and treatment given different levels of alumina production and rainfall using internationally recognized modelling and simulation platforms. The Federal University of Campina Grande (UFCG) is widely...
Ireland’s Finance Minister Paschal O’Donohue met US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin in Washington to discuss the future of Aughinish Alumina, which was put into uncertainty after the U.S. sanctions on Rusal. “He was going with a very simple message that it (Aughinish) was of strategic importance not only to Ireland but to Europe and the broader aluminium industry,” Minister of State Patrick O’Donovan told the local media after the meeting. He said that the discussions on Aughinish and Limerick have been very positive. The US authorities again postponed activating any sanctions until January 21. The US authorities announced sanctions against Oleg Deripaska’s EN+ Group and Rusal, the aluminium company that owns Aughinish Alumina. No agreed compromise has yet been reached between EN+ Group...
The first shipment of bauxite from Rio Tinto’s $2.6 billion Amrun bauxite project in Queensland has arrived at the Port of Gladstone. More than 80,000 tonnes of bauxite were loaded onto the vessel RTM Weipa for departure from the Western Cape York Peninsula on December 3, achieved six weeks ahead of schedule. Rio Tinto Yarwun general manager Mark Gilmore said: “This arrival of the first shipment from Amrun is an exciting milestone for us.” “It not only marks the start of additional supply to our two alumina refineries and smelter in Gladstone, but will support China’s significant import needs for decades to come.” “Amrun has provided a major boost to the Queensland economy, and will continue to do so, not only on Cape York Peninsula, but also in Gladstone.” Amrun mine will replace...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) has officially announced the commissioning of its Potline 6 with the First Pot Energisation on Thursday December 13, 2018. This is the smelter’s first step towards becoming the world’s largest aluminium smelter. Alba made a breakthrough by bringing forwards the First Hot Metal milestone ahead of its scheduled date on January 01, 2019, making it the fastest construction in the history of aluminium industry. The commissioning ceremony, held under the patronage of Alba’s Chairman of the Board of Directors Shaikh Daij bin Salman bin Daij Al Khalifa, was attended by the Executive Vice President - Midstream Operations, EGA, Dr. Ali Al Zarouni and other key EGA officials along with Alba’s Board of Directors, CEO Tim Murray, Deputy CEO Ali Al Baqali, Alba’s...
