
ASSA ABLOY has agreed to acquire Brazilian aluminium solutions manufacturer Rometal, strengthening its manufacturing presence in Latin America while expanding its portfolio of door systems, furniture fittings and aluminium products. Announced on November 12, 2026, the proposed acquisition would bring an established Brazilian business with approximately 500 employees into the Swedish group's Americas Division. Rometal recorded sales of approximately BRL 332 million (USD 59 million) in 2025, equivalent to approximately SEK 580 million (USD 57.57 million) in ASSA ABLOY's announcement. The purchase price has not been disclosed. ASSA ABLOY described the company's EBIT margin in 2025 as strong and expects the transaction to be accretive to earnings per share from the start. Rometal acquisition...
Finland-based renewable heat technology developer Coolbrook has joined Australia’s Heavy Industry Low-carbon Transition Cooperative Research Centre (HILT CRC) as an affiliate partner, bringing its electrified heating technology into research aimed at decarbonising alumina refining and the wider aluminium industry. The collaboration would explore how high-temperature electric heating can support next-generation alumina refineries, reducing reliance on fossil fuels. Coolbrook would work alongside major alumina and aluminium producers, including Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), Alcoa, Rio Tinto, South32 and Hydro, as well as research organisations of CSIRO and Adelaide University. Initially, it would focus on HILT CRC’s Alumina Refineries’ Next-Generation Transition (AlumiNEXT) project,...
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Most LME and SHFE base metals dropped last night. LME aluminium wakened to a low of US$2,083 per tonne before rebounding to USS$2,103 per tonne. LME aluminium contract closed lower at US$ 2120.5 per tonne yesterday July 4 from US$ 2165 per tonne on July 3. Shanghai Metals Market expects the contract to trade at US$2,080-2,115 per tonne today. As on July 4, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stands at US$ 2120 per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 2120.50 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 2098 per tonne, 3-months offer price is US$ 2100 per tonne; Dec 19 bid price stands at US$ 2133 per tonne, and Dec 19 offer price stands at US$ 2138 per tonne. The LME aluminium opening stock decreased to 1104600 tonnes. Live Warrants totalled at 905700 tonnes, and Cancelled...

The decline in China’s social inventory of primary aluminium continued to slow down over the week ended July 5, 2018, according to the data showed by Shanghai Metals Market. This could be attributed to the slowdown in consumption, resulting in suppressed purchasing interest among downstream consumers. As of Thursday, July 5, inventories of primary aluminium, including SHFE warrants, across eight major consumption areas shrank only 1,000 tonnes from Monday, July 2, to stand at 1.83 million tonnes. The figure fell 10,000 tonnes from last Thursday, June 28, compared to a drop of 40,000 in the week before. In some of the Chinese cities like Wuxi and Jiangsu, Gongyi and Henan, and Linyi and Shandong, the inventories witnessed a rise today, on July 5, in compare with Monday, July 2. While the...

On the expected three-fold growth in steel and aluminium consumption by 2030, Nalco CMD Tapan Kumar Chand declared that skilled manpower will get their due values. He said, “The pattern of employment is undergoing a drastic change. The skill sets need to be realigned to meet the demands of the industries and cutting edge technology will provide the competitive edge.” He also said, while stressing on the importance of generating employment, “As Aluminium sector is expected to grow substantially, NALCO is geared up for the next wave of expansion. Over 11,000 people will be recruited by NALCO in the near future and we will shortlist the candidates from UPSC screened list. We will not take written test for these candidates since they have already been screened by the UPSC.” “Out of Rs. 28,000...

Altech Chemicals Limited has provided an update on the development of its high purity alumina (HPA) project in Malaysia. The company’s Managing Director Iggy Tan updated Proactive Investors that Altech’s HPA plant can lower production costs by utilising disruptive technology. Altech is aiming to become one of the world's leading suppliers of 99.99% (4N) high purity alumina (HPA). The company will construct a 4,500tpa HPA plant at the Tanjung Langsat Industrial Complex, Johor, Malaysia. Iggy Tan said: "We're going to build a 4,500 tonne per annum plant, but the growth in [demand] is so strong that we expect there will be 20 times our plant in growth by 2025... we are the only project in the world today that's at funding stage... we have a totally different process, we're disruptive, and we...

The Reserve Bank of India has urged the Hyderabad High Court for seeking to permit The State Bank of India to go ahead with insolvency proceedings against Anrak Aluminium, an Indo-UAE joint venture. SBI legal counsel VK Sajith has confirmed the RBI’s petition but refused to comment on the matter terming it sub judice. The company had defaulted on INR ?3,242 crores of loans and US$96 million of external commercial borrowings to the SBI-led lender’s consortium. In March, the high court had stayed the proceedings before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), after Anrak Aluminium approached the court saying that it had already entered into a one-time settlement with lenders. But the banking regulators challenged the case claiming that neither the company formulated any resolution plan...

The global demand for recycled aluminium is expected to grow at a faster pace in the coming years. The global aluminium scrap recycling market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.59% during the period 2017-2021, according to Technavio’s analysts. Greece purchased US$56.7 billion worth of goods from around the world in 2017, an increase of 19.2% from 2016 Aluminium scrap import by Greece also increased 6% year on year in 2017. The country’s import of aluminium scrap increased in both volume and value in 2017 when compared to 2016 data. According to the international trade data, Greece imported 37905 tonnes of aluminium scrap in 2017, a 6% up from its 2016 imports totalling 35731 tonnes. In 2018, the country’s import of aluminium scrap is estimated to decline 8% from last year. Greece is...

Brazil, the world’s third-largest producer of bauxite and alumina will host 2018 ExpoAlumínio International Aluminum Exhibition on September 3 to 5 to present the full potential of sector companies and buyers in Brazil and in all of Latin America. The event will provide a platform for the innovations, experiences, and content directed at the entire aluminum production chain, from bauxite to recycling. More than 140 local and international names from the aluminum supply chain are expected, including the segments of machinery, equipment, accessories, raw materials, semi-manufactured goods, processed goods, recycling, general services, and consulting. Among the companies that have confirmed their presence are: Alcoa, CBA, Hydro, Novelis, Prolind, Tomra, Italy’s Europiante, and many others....

Even after endless criticisms from allies, United States President Donald Trump maintains a defensive stance towards his decision of imposing billions of dollars of tariffs on allies’ aluminium and steel exports. Since May 31, when the US had announced 25 per cent additional tariff on imported steel and 10 per cent on aluminium on the EU, Canada, and Mexico, the US had been facing tremendous backlashes from those countries. The European Union and Canada both slapped heavy duties on the US’ exports in retaliation. While the EU imposed tariffs on American goods worth US$ 3 billion, the Canadian government announced duties on goods of C$16.6 billion. Nonetheless, Trump and his administration have enough to defend their decisions. According to the Hill, Trump and his administration explained...

The phased construction of the Jamaica-Gansu Industrial Park, the island's first Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is expected to start next January, Government minister Mike Henry said this to the Jamaican House of Representatives last Wednesday. Jiuquan Iron and Steel Company (JISCO) that operates the Alpart alumina refinery in Nain, St. Elizabeth has announced investment of about US$6 billion in June 2018 for the development of Gansu Industrial Park and Special Economic Zone around the refinery. According to Henry, the Government is currently looking at the “dual impact” of the industrial park, which is being supported by Chinese firm, JISCO. Henry said during the sectoral debate that that JISCO is streamlining the development of the industrial park with a total investment of US$6 billion...

The Recycling Partnership, the City of Denver and the Can Capture Group – a consortium of national can manufacturers: Anheuser-Busch; Ardagh Group; Ball Corporation and Crown Holdings, aluminium suppliers: Novelis and Tri-Arrows Aluminium, and the Can Manufacturers Institute – announced the expansion of Denver’s recycling education program to increase aluminium beverage cans recycling citywide. The city aims to raise its recycling and composting rate to 34% by 2020. Image Source: The Recycling Partnership Michael Hancock, Mayor of Denver, said: “Denver is proud to team up once again with The Recycling Partnership and the Can Capture Group and to be the first city in the country to run this challenge to recycle every aluminium we can in the metro area”. “We’re ready to take our recycling...

The US dollar inched down to close at 94.58 on a stronger Euro before the US Independence Day holiday. Despite that base metals went down on worries over global trade conflicts and weak Chinese manufacturing data released earlier this week. The LME aluminium contract closed slightly higher at US$ 2165 per tonne yesterday July 3 from US$ 2153 per tonne on July 2. However, the contract plummeted to a low of US$2,083 per tonne from a high of US$2,135 per tonne overnight. Shanghai Metals Market expects it to trade at US$2,077-2,117 per tonne today. As on July 3, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stands at US$ 2163 per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 2165 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 2132 per tonne, 3-months offer price is US$ 2132 per tonne; Dec 19 bid price...

According to the latest survey report by Shanghai Metals Market, the purchasing managers’ index for the downstream processing industries of aluminium dipped to 46 in June from May’s 54.8. This indicates that the PMI in June stood below the 50 mark that separates expansion and contraction. In the background of slow season in June, June’s production index, particularly for the aluminium plate/sheet and ship industry, dipped straight from 72.7 in May to 40.9 in June, while the new order index dropped from May’s 42.2 to 29.9. This enormous drop was primarily due to orders decline for heavy, medium, and thin plates/sheets used in the petroleum and petrochemical industries, hot-rolled coils, construction-use panels, as well as aluminium plastic-composite panels. The PMI for aluminium foil...

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told a media briefing on Monday, July 2, that Canada’s measures to impose tariffs on imports of aluminium, steel and other products from US worth C$16.6 billion ($12.63 billion) in response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian aluminium and steel will not help Canada’s economy, Reuters reported. “Escalating tariffs against the United States does nothing to help Canada. It only hurts American workers,” Sarah Sanders said. “We’ve been very nice to Canada for many years, and they’ve taken advantage of that - particularly advantage of our farmers,” Sanders said. “The president is working to fix the broken system, and he’s going to continue pushing for that.” Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on US products went into effect on Sunday, July 1.The Government of Canada...

Bilgin shipyard announced two sister yachts from Bilgin 263 series are under construction at the Istanbul shipyard. Turkey’s largest yachts Bilgin 263-I is expected to launch in the latter half of 2019 and Bilgin 263-II is likely to make a debut in 2020. Bilgin 263-I has achieved 75 per cent of hull number one’s steel hull construction, while Bilgin 263-II has achieved 50 per cent of construction. Aluminium superstructure of hull one has also begun. These 80-metre superyachts are utilising a super eco-friendly approach in compliance with IMO Tier III certification that aims to reduce nitrogen dioxide emissions (NOx) by about 70 per cent compared to the current Tier II standards. Both the yachts feature fascinating interiors including bright living areas, extensive saloon and private...

A Cardiff-based aluminium fabricator Dudley’s Aluminium announced it has invested £200,000 for the expansion of its facilities. The company has invested in a new storage and offtake facility and a second Combilift multidirectional forklift, according to news published by Insider Media. The investment in a new facility will make the company’s operations more efficient. Colin Shorney, Managing Director of Dudley's said: "We are pleased to have made this significant investment in a new facility to help make our operations more efficient. The last 12-months has seen a strong period for Dudley’s Aluminium in terms of contract wins and with the new facility we can ensure the smooth flow of materials on a project-to-project basis." Assistant Production Manager, Geraint Bowden, said: "With the...

The Indo-Italian MetalHub , a one day event, which was designed to encourage cooperation between the Indian and Italian industrial metals districts, was held in Milan on July 2. This marked another step towards the cooperation between the technical excellence of Italy and the mineral richness of India. The initiative was dedicated to the industrial and mineral resources of India and with a special focus on the State of Odisha in Eastern India, where a large part of India’s mineral and metallurgical resources are concentrated. Odisha’s Industries Minister Ananta Das and his delegation met the top industrialists of Italy in Milan during the event. The delegation included industries secretary Sanjeev Chopra and chairman of the Odisha Industrial Development Corporation Sanjay Singh. Das also...

According to the data published by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica-STATIN in its Producer Price Index Report, bauxite production in May declined in Jamaica as a result of the Jamaican dollar losing value to the US currency. The Producer Price Index measures the average change in selling prices received by domestic producers of goods and services. According to STATIN report, the Mining and Quarrying declined 1.8 per cent mainly due to the currency slide. The devaluation of currency also resulted in a negative movement of 1.9 per cent in the Bauxite Mining and Alumina Processing group. STATIN, on the other hand, reported Other Mining and Quarrying activities recorded a positive movement of 0.9 per cent for the same period, while manufacturing rose 1.7 per cent in May. The trade deficit...

According to a report from the Dak Nong Aluminum Company of Vietnam, its Nhan Co Alumina plant in the Central Highland province of Dak Nong earned more than 3.2 trillion VND (US$141 million) in revenue in the first half of 2018. The company belongs to the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin). The refinery produced more than 324,000 tonnes of alumina in the first half of 2018, which is about 56% of the annual alumina production target. The plant’s total alumina output stood at 600,348 tonnes in one year of operation. Out of the total production in the first half of 2018, 303,000 tonnes of alumina produced by the Nhan Co plant were consumed during the January-June period, about 55.6% of the annual target. Vinacomin Chairman Le Minh Chuan attributed the reduced cost...