BorgWarner has won its first commercial order for an electric motor developed with aluminium-wire hairpin winding technology. The US automotive supplier will provide the new eMotor to a major Chinese automaker for use in hybrid vehicles, bringing the technology into its first production application. The motor uses aluminium-wire hairpin winding technology and is designed for hybrid vehicles. Its applications include generator motors and traction motors for auxiliary drive systems, with production scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026. Explore AL Circle’s report ALuminium Wires & Cables - Insights & Forecast to 2030 for insights into aluminium applications, industry developments and opportunities across the electrical sector . Compared with conventional copper-wire motors with...
Getting a clean, smooth finish while removing material quickly is not always easy when machining high-strength aluminium alloys. A new study on AA7075-T6 aluminium alloy has explored this challenge, identifying two different sets of drilling conditions to improve surface quality and maximise machining productivity. The research examined how cutting speed, feed rate and drill depth influence conventional drilling performance. Using response surface methodology and a central composite design, the researchers developed predictive models to determine how changes in these parameters affect the machining process. The models showed a strong level of accuracy, with coefficients of determination (R²) reaching 0.9731 for surface roughness and 0.9359 for material removal rate. Further confirmation...
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Arconic Inc. yesterday announced results for the second quarter of 2017 and updated its guidance for the year. The company ended the first half of 2017 with significantly less debt, a strong cash position and good liquidity. The company posted revenue of $3.3 billion , an increase of one per cent year over year. This was mainly driven by higher volumes across all business segments as well as higher aluminium prices. Adjusting for Tennessee packaging, revenues were up 5 per cent year over year. Arconic reported net income of $212 million in the second quarter. “The results including $47 million in special items, including a gain on the debt-for-equity exchange of Alcoa Corporation shares, which is intended to qualify as generally tax-free to Arconic for U.S. federal income tax purposes,”...
Norsk Hydro reports positive 2nd quarter 2017 results driven by higher realized all-in metal and favourable currency developments that was slightly offset by higher raw material costs and lower realized alumina prices. Hydro reports underlying EBITD of to NOK 2,930 million in comparison to NOK 2,284 million in the 1st quarter 2017. Commenting on the results, Hydro President & CEO, Svein Richard Brandtzæg says: "Higher aluminium prices in the quarter are lifting results, and I am pleased to see Sapa delivering record results, continuing the strong trend." "Hydro will confirm its position as the world's leading integrated aluminium company with the agreement to acquire Orkla's 50 percent interest in world-leading extrusion company Sapa. The transaction reinforces our strategic direction to...
China alumina spot market is bracing for an increased supply as illegal aluminium capacity closure is expected to add nearly 170,000 tonnes of alumina to it, reported Shanghai Metals Market. Driven by the speculation, alumina prices in some of China’s major markets dropped significantly on Tuesday, July 25. The average alumina price in Central China market dived by 0.59 per cent from its earlier RMB 2,550 per tonne on July 24, to RMB 2,535 per tonne on July 25. The commodity has been static at RMB 2,550 per tonne level since its last drop on July 18. The drop has been steeper for alumina prices in the North China market. The commodity fell by 0.98 per cent to stand at RMB 2,525 per tonne on July 25, as compared to its last stand at RMB 2,550 per tonne on July 24. North China alumina had...
Hydro reports positive results for the second quarter of 2017, driven by better metal prices. However, underlying EBIT for Bauxite & Alumina decreased from the first quarter mostly attributed to lower realized alumina prices, driven by a weaker alumina index. Higher raw material consumption also affected the results for bauxite and alumina segment. Higher alumina sales volumes contributed positively to the results. However, the current ramp-up process of the new press filter operation to separate and recycle caustic soda from red mud has caused additional operational cost at the alumina refinery. The Alunorte alumina refinery and the Paragominas bauxite mine had higher production in the second quarter after completing planned maintenance in the first quarter. Hydro reports a total alumina...
Dudley's Aluminium, Cardiff-based manufacturer of aluminium curtain-walling, windows, shop-fronts, automatic and revolving doors, fire-resistant glazing, louvres and brise soleil, has won a contract worth £1m to build the new International Convention Centre Wales (ICC Wales) in Newport. Aluminium fabricator has secured a contract with Sisk Contractors to help in building the new Convention Centre. The work at the centre will start in November this year. The ICC Wales is expected to open in mid-2019 Dudley’s engineers will install Kawneer AA110 capped curtain walling including sloped roof glazing, automatic sliding and manual entrance doors. At present, Dudley's Aluminium offers Kawneer, Metal Technology, and AluK aluminium systems. Dudley’s managing director Colin Shorney said: “We are...
The recent volatility in LME aluminium prices seems to be extending further. The light metal contract which edged marginally higher at US$1,901 per tonne on Friday, July 21, fell again to US$1,890 per tonne on Monday, July 24. The drop in aluminium prices can also be partly attributed to the US dollar index that is regaining strength from its last week’s lows. Reuters’ technical analysis suggests that LME aluminium may rise into US$1,929-1,936 per tonne range in the short term. There is a support at US$1,913 per tonne, a break below which could a loss to US$1,898 per tonne. According to Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium will hover in the range of US$1,905-1,925 per tonne on Tuesday, July 25, as resistance is intensifying. As on July 24, LME official cash buyer aluminium price...
Rio’s subsidiary Tomago Aluminium smelter in New South Wales has been struggling with uncertain power supply and higher power rate issues for years now. Tomago, which is co-owned by Rio and has CSR subsidiary Gove Aluminium Finance consumes 12 per cent of the state’s electricity. It employs 1150 people and produces about 550,000 tonnes of aluminium a year. The smelter is currently facing production cut threat as a result of increasing wholesale electricity prices. Rio-controlled Boyne Island smelter in Gladstone has also reported the same concern sometimes back. Rio Tinto blames the strong market power of east coast electricity generators for irregular price hike. They, according to the company spokesperson are exercising their power to deliberately drive up prices. The company has urged...
The House of Representatives has approved $715.687 million grant to the Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI) from the Capital Development Fund (CDF), as a budgetary support for the 2017/18 financial year. Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw confirmed that JBI is to receive $223 million in budgetary support for the 2017/18 financial year. Besides that about $487.367 million is to be reimbursed to Jamaica Bauxite Mining which they paid to Glencore AG as advanced payments on behalf of the Government. The reimbursement was the result of the termination of a supply agreement between JBM and Glencore, and JBM’s failure to fulfil its supply quota. Dr. Peter Phillips, the leader of the opposition also approved the withdrawals from the CDF. He however urged that the country...
The implementation of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) regime has resulted in the decrease of effective coal prices by 2-3 per cent for aluminium producers in India. The new tax structure has subsumed several additional taxes making power a little cheaper for the domestic players in the energy-intensive aluminium sector. Under the new regime, coal attracts 5 per cent tax compared to the earlier 12 per cent tax. Prevailing environmental taxes, local taxes and a number of other charges have effectively brought down the effective tax rate by 2-3 per cent, instead of 7 per cent. "In effect, the effective tax rate on coal has reduced by 2-3 per cent, which is also considerable given the volumes the coal consumers purchase," said an official at the Coal Consumers Association. Aluminium is an...
The Aluminum Association President Heidi Brock wrote a letter to the secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department urging him not to exempt aluminium cans allegedly dumped by China in the U.S. market from the ongoing Section 232 investigations. Earlier this month, Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI) had asked the U.S. Commerce Department to exempt aluminium can sheets and other aluminium products, which are used to make beverage cans, from tariff or trade restrictions. The head of the American Trade Association to Wilbur Ross, “As an industry directly impacted by Chinese overcapacity and unfair trading practices with respect to aluminum and aluminum products, we welcome the Section 232 investigation and encourage the Administration to consider actions that will specifically address Chinese...
After hitting the highs of around 1.28 million tonnes in Q2 FY 2016-17, India’s bauxite export is inching towards a decline, as steep as 59.7per cent year-on-year, reveals global export-import trade estimate. The country exported an estimated volume of 4.12 million tonnes of bauxite in 2016, down from 8.11 million tonnes in 2015. The decline was attributed to the high custom duty imposed on the export of the mineral ore. Though it was expected earlier that Indian bauxite exports will rejig in 2017, the trend does not seem to be progressing in that direction. In Q1 FY 2017-18, Indian’s total bauxite export was estimated at 622,143 tonnes, up from 287,451 tonnes in the corresponding period previous year. In Q2 FY 2017-18, the volume is estimated to rise to 516,550 tonnes. However, this is...
Driven by the unstoppable China appetite, alumina prices have rallied till now in H1 2017. But a look at the current price trend will reveal a moderating pace. With China slashing aluminium smelting capacity in major production hubs and further production control looming large for Q4 FY 2017-18, the demand for the commodity is expected to weaken in the short to medium term, and this will get reflected in alumina prices for H2 2017. Currently, alumina prices are holding on around US$300-310 per tonne. So, will the alumina prices drop? - Unlikely, because there is a steep increase in alumina input cost. Caustic soda is getting costlier. Its prices have risen by 11 per cent; further, China will be soon restarting its high-cost aluminium capacities filling the gap left by the exit of low-cost...
The prices of A00 Aluminium Ingot inched higher across major China markets though there was no fresh news of domestic aluminium output cut after Xinjiang and Shandong. The demand for the metal is estimated to drop in the fourth quarter of the current financial year, when focus will be primarily on production control during winter heating season. Prior to that primary aluminium prices are expected to range widely in the Chinese domestic market. As on Monday, July 24, the average price of A00 Aluminium Ingot (South China) stood at RMB 14,235 per tonne, the highest among the six market prices. The price rose by 0.04 per cent from its earlier close of RMB 14,230 on July 21. In terms of the percentage rise, A00 Aluminium Ingot (East China- Zhejiang)) registered the highest jump on July 24. The...
LME aluminium ended last week marginally above US$1,900 per tonne. Rising by 0.15 per cent from its earlier close of US$1,898 per tonne, the light metal settled at US$1,901 per tonne on Friday, July 21. With no further news of aluminium output cut in China, LME aluminium is expected to hold ground at US$1,910-1,930 per tonne range on Monday, July 24, Shanghai Metals Market said. As on July 21, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$1,900.50 per tonne, cash seller & settlement aluminium price (Offer price) is US$1,901 per tonne, 3M Bid Price is US$1,925.50 per tonne, 3M Offer Price is US$1,926 per tonne, Dec1 Bid Price is US$1,968 per tonne, and Dec1 Offer Price is US$1,973 per tonne. The current LME official Opening Stock of aluminium is estimated at 1354550...
According to the data showed by the International Aluminium Institute (IAI), the daily average primary aluminium production excluding China increased in June against May. The primary aluminium production stood at 70,300 tonnes in June as compared to 70,000 tonnes in May. In China, the daily average aluminium production increase to 97,700 tonnes in June from 91,100 tonnes in May. On a monthly basis, the global primary aluminium production, outside China, was 2.11 million tonnes in June, down from 2.17 million tonnes in May. In China, the primary aluminium production jumped 7.4 year-on-year to 2.93 million tonnes in June. The country produced 2.83 million tonnes of aluminium in May, up 4.2 per cent year-on-year.
Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) has developed a technology that can produce porous aluminium alloy that can float. In this process, foaming gas is added into liquid aluminium during re-melting process. According to the SPbPU's update the porous materials can increase stiffness and sound and heat insulating proprieties. According to the developers this technology can be successfully used in aluminium shipbuilding to achieve unsinkability during leaks in the hull. "A high porosity level can be used to decrease the density of structural elements, e.g. sheets. The density can be decreased even lower than the density of water. Resulting structural elements would be unsinkable. And its usage in shipbuilding will ensure unsinkability even with a leak in the hull,"...
One of the world’s top 100 wire and cable producers based in the Middle East, Oman Cable Industry recently announced the financial highlights of the six months period ended June 30, 2017. The Group’s net profit declined 39 per cent year-on-year, and so were the results for its subsidiary Oman Aluminium Processing Industries LLC (OAPIL). In spite of the significant increase in aluminium wire and cable sales volume, the company’s net profit dipped for the period under review in comparison with the corresponding period previous year. Oman Cable Industry’s net profit for the first half of the current financial year fell to RO5.7 million compared to RO9.4 million of H1 2016. The Group’s total sales for the period increased by 1.1 per cent year-on-year to RO125.3 million from RO123.9 million...
India’s automotive component manufacturing sector is on a growth trajectory. Driven by the increased urbanization, evolving automotive industry demand (as it is readying for the Electric Vehicles revolution), and changing fuel economy standards, the sector is growing at a pace never seen before. Foreign investments from countries like China and the US are flowing in, and there is a fair amount of optimism in the country’s economic environment that is created by the government pet projects like Make in India, 100 Smart Cities etc. Automotive aluminium die-casting part manufacturing is a sub-sector, which seems to be having a lot of growth potential. The following statistical analyses by the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) show where the country’s automotive...
