Aluminium alloy powder production for additive manufacturing is set to expand through a new technical cooperation agreement between CNPC Powder China Ltd and Xi’an Bright Laser Technologies Co Ltd (BLT). The agreement covers the production and international distribution of BLT-AlAM400, an aluminium alloy powder developed for applications in humanoid robotics, new energy vehicles (NEVs), aerospace and other industrial sectors. Under the agreement, BLT has authorised Shanghai-based CNPC Powder to manufacture BLT-AlAM400 on a contract basis in China and sell the powder internationally. CNPC Powder has also secured exclusive overseas agency rights, excluding BLT’s direct sales network and existing regional agents. With an annual powder production capacity of almost 10,000 tonnes, CNPC Powder...
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...
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British luxury sports car manufacturer Aston Martin is mulling over bringing back its 1959-launched DB4 GT models in a brand new avatar. To be re-introduced in elaborate yet suave aluminium bodywork and chassis containing aluminium, 1959GT Aston Martin is going to be the second "bring back the future" car model after Jaguar's 'new old' versions of the E-Type and XKSS . While the 2017 sports cars will be designed to match the elegance of the original, they will also represent the perfect blend of "old world craftsmanship and modern techniques" with improved engine performance, handling, braking and safety. The use of aluminium is expected to reduce the weight of the vehicles to a significant extent, Aston Martin says. The continuation cars with aluminium bodywork and chassis (parts) will...
The leading global mining and metals group Rio Tinto reported strong operational performance in Aluminium with production soaring high across all three verticals (bauxite, alumina, and aluminium) in comparison to that recorded in 2015. Annual production record for primary aluminium was set in all smelters, including the recently reopened Kitimat aluminium smelter in British Columbia. Rio Tinto produced a total volume of 3,646,000 tonnes (3.64 million tonnes) of aluminium in 2016, up 10 per cent from the previous year. The group's total underlying earnings was estimated at US$947 million, down 15 per cent from 2015. Rio Tinto attributed the decline primarily to the commodity market downturn and lower prices, which together weighed on earnings by US$507 million. However, through a better...
Taiwan-based smartphone maker HTC has launched HTC 10 Evo crafted from aluminium in the Indian market. HTC claims the handset is the company’s first metal body smartphone with IP57 certification, meaning dust proof features. One of the main highlights of the HTC 10 evo is it packs USB Type C-enabled 'dual adaptive' headphones that tailor their output to the user's ear structure and hearing. The smartphone is equipped with BoomSound Adaptive Audio. The HTC 10 Evo sports a 5.5-inch QHD display wit Gorilla Glass protection and sports a water-resistant aluminium build. The handset has fingerprint scanner that can unlock the device in just 0.2 seconds. The device comes with 16-megapixel rear camera and powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chipset. It runs on Android 7.0 Nougat...
India aluminium scrap prices remained fairly stable on Wednesday, February 8, while aluminium futures prices edged higher at Mumbai's Multi Commodity Exchange, reported Scrap Register. Aluminium futures gained on the back of ongoing scanning of smelters by the government agencies in China which saw worries building up over possible production cuts. The major aluminium scrap commodities like aluminium cable scrap, aluminium ingots, aluminium rod company, aluminium rod local, aluminium scrap 6063, aluminium scrap taint/tabor, aluminium sheet cutting, aluminium utensil scrap and aluminium wire scrap held steady on the Scrap Register Price Index. The most traded February aluminium contract on MCX stood at INR 123.20 per kilogram on Wednesday, inching higher by 0.37 per cent from the previous...
Indian government said yesterday that the centre is considering taking further actions in order to protect the interests of the domestic aluminium industry without affecting the interests of downstream industries. A Parliamentary Panel explained, "The mines ministry is again considering to take further steps for the survival of the aluminium industry. For this purpose, several meetings have been held with the representatives of primary producers of aluminium as well as secondary producers of aluminium/downstream industries." The Twelfth Report of the Committee on Public Undertakings on National Aluminium Company Ltd (Nalco) comprised observations/recommendations on the current industry situation worsened by the increased inflow of cheap aluminium imports. In the 2016-17 Budgets, finance...
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Norsk Hydro has reported its fourth quarter 2016 results with a record bauxite production at Paragominas and alumina production in Alunorte. For the full year 2016, the Paragominas bauxite mine and the Alunorte alumina refinery reached record yearly production of 11.1 million mt and 6.3 million mt, respectively. Underlying EBIT for the Bauxite & Alumina business has increased significantly compared to the third quarter. The positive result is driven primarily by higher realized alumina prices and aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange. There was also a significant positive effect from the settlement of a compensation arrangement related to the acquisition of Paragominas in 2011, which was realized after the complete acquisition of the remaining shares in Paragominas from Vale. "I...
LME aluminium advanced on Thursday closing at US$1,839 per tonne after night trading even though dollar firmed up against the Japanese yen. The rise registered was 0.98 per cent from the previous day's closing of US$1,821 per tonne. Shanghai Metals Market (SMM) forecast says the contract will trade closely with the dollar and range between US$1,845-1,865 per tonne on Friday, February 10. As on February 8, LME official cash buyer price of aluminium stands at US$1,820.5 per tonne, cash seller & settlement price is US$1,821 per tonne, 3M buyer price is US$1,840 per tonne, 3M seller price is US$1,840.5 per tonne, Dec1 buyer price is US$1,895 per tonne, and Dec1 seller price is US$1,900 per tonne. The current LME official Opening Stock of aluminium is estimated at 2254650 tonnes, total Live...
Norsk Hydro has reported its forth quarter 2016 results. Hydro's underlying EBIT increased to NOK 1,829 million in Q4 from NOK 1,477 million in Q3 2016. The rise was due to higher realized alumina and aluminium prices, slightly offset by seasonally higher costs and lower aluminium product sales. Hydro expects healthy demand for aluminium and aluminium products, forecasting global primary demand growth at 3-5 % in 2017. Commenting on the results, Svein Richard Brandtzæg, President and CEO of Hydro said, "Demand for aluminium remains firm and prices have increased, contributing to a solid quarter for Hydro. I am particularly pleased to see more and more car producers choosing aluminium for light-weighting and climate purposes. I am eager to see our new Rolled Products automotive line in...
The European Commission has decided to continue to impose a 22.3 per cent anti-dumping duty on imports of aluminium wheels from the Peoples’ Republic of China. The anti-dumping duty is on original equipment and aftermarket wheels. The Association of European Wheel Manufacturers (EUWA), an organisation representing companies whose production accounts for more than 25 per cent of the European Union’s total for certain aluminium wheel types, has requested the European Commission to start an investigation. The European Commission initiated a review but later Commission found “no compelling reasons” not to maintain the existing duties. According to Wang Hejun, director of the ministry’s Trade Remedy and Investigation Bureau stated that Chinese companies were being unfairly blamed for the...
Hindalco shares surged over 3 per cent to an intraday high of INR 192.25 on Wednesday after its US subsidiary Novelis reported strong earnings for the October to December quarter. Novelis contributes more than half of Hindalco's operating profit. Atlanta-based Novelis said its adjusted net profit for the December quarter more than doubled to $67 million dollar compared to $32 million in the year ago quarter. Novelis' strong performance was supported by a 7 per cent jump in its adjusted EBITDA or operating income to a record high of $255 million and 18 per cent reduction in interest expenses as a result of refinancing of two senior note issuances during the second quarter of fiscal 2017, the company said in a press release. "Following our successful bond refinancing during the second...
The British luxury car maker Rolls-Royce unveiled the last production of its Phantom VII with the extensive use of aluminium as the company rolls out a new production line after 13 years. The Phantom VII marks the launch of the marque’s bespoke programme whereby Phantom serves as a blank canvas enabling buyers to make their personalised additions. The company uses a new aluminium space frame that is designed and engineered for providing high-strength and making it lightweight. The model comes with a 6.75-litre V12 Rolls-Royce engine developed in-house which provides 454 horsepower and 531 pound-feet of torque. With the end of this production, the company is set to introduce a new Phantom VIII, underpinned by all-new aluminium architecture of luxury. Phantom’s off-the-shelf price has been...
Ontario, Canada based Exco Technologies has reported a quarterly Earnings Per Share of $0.27 in its recently held 2016 annual meeting of shareholders. A total of 24,407,453 common shares or 57.33 per cent of the issued and outstanding common shares were voted in connection with the meeting, Exco stated in an official media release. The global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the aluminium die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries reported total sales of $153.1 million versus $130.9 million in the last quarter ended 31 December, 2016, registering a rise of 17 per cent year-on-year. EBITDA was up 11 per cent from the corresponding period previous year. Exco raised its fourth quarterly dividend by 14 per cent to US$0.08 per common share. Free cash flow of US$18 million was...
Aluminium exports by the Russian Federation increased last year totalling 3,481,400 tonnes, reported the State Customs Committee of the Russian Federation. Aluminium, as per 2015 Custom data, represents the fourth highest dollar-valued export commodity (valued at US$6.9 billion) constituting 2.1 per cent of the total exports from Russia. Over the last three years, aluminium export market has remained fairly unchanged with little impact noted from the surge in aluminium supply from China which has added to the worries of other primary metal producers across the world. {newsStudioGallery} According to the export-import data gathered from the Federation's major ports, the country exported 3.56 million tonnes of aluminium (both alloyed and non-alloyed ingots) in 2015, which increased 0.84 per...
Airobotics, a leading provider of an end-to-end fully automatic solution, has developed an unmanned drone solution, the first of its kind in the global market. The company’s multi-purpose drone will be utilized at an Australian resources operation in a little while. Airobotics Co-founder and CEO Ran Krauss commented: “The launch of Airobotics’ automated drone platform marks an important milestone, being one of the first deployments for Airobotics in Australia.” The fully automated drone will be deployed for scrutinizing machinery and conducting surveying and mapping at South32’s Worsley Alumina operations. The industrial grade automated drone comes with high capacity and cloud based software helps the user to control with one click. South32, a base metal and coal mining company, will use...
LME aluminium recovered from its recent lows to climb higher on Wednesday, January 8. The contract closed at US$1,821 per tonne after yesterday's night trading, up 0.66 per cent from the previous day's closing of US$1,809 per tonne. Shanghai Metals Market forecast says LME aluminium will hover at highs in the near term and test US$1,850 per tonne on Thursday, January 9, moving in the range of US$1,840-1,860 per tonne. As on February 8, LME official cash buyer price of aluminium stands at US$1,820.5 per tonne, cash seller & settlement price is US$1,821 per tonne, 3M buyer price is US$1,840 per tonne, 3M seller price is US$1,840.5 per tonne, Dec1 buyer price is US$1,895 per tonne, and Dec1 seller price is US$1,900 per tonne. The current LME official Opening Stock of aluminium is estimated...
The 14th International Aluminium Recycling Congress that took place in Manchester on 7 and 8 February played host to over 150 delegates from across Europe. European Aluminium firmly reiterated its commitment towards the conference theme “Recycling at its best: the circular economy opportunity” during the conference. The Association opined that Europe should be more pro-active to cooperate closely on a global level to close the recycling loop. EU policymakers should ensure equivalent standards for treating exported EU scrap to set a global standard. Gerd Götz, Director General of European Aluminium stated during the conference: “Europe is creating the basis for the circular economy, but we need to close the loop on a global level.” …“We follow high environmental, health and safety...
The global aluminium market ended in a marginal deficit of 970,000 tonnes during the first eleven months of 2016, revealed data published in the latest report of the World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS). In 2015, the deficit amount was recorded at 551,000 tonnes. The stocks of the metal, at the end of the review period, stood at 2,644 kilo tonnes. The total aluminium demand grew marginally by 68,000 tonnes to total 53.58 million tonnes during January to February 2016. China, as expected, led the demand engine, thanks to its ever expanding end user markets. Aluminium demand in the EU-28 also rose by 409 kilo tonnes year-on-year during the initial eleven months of 2016. Based on the latest available aluminium production capacity data, here we provide the list of top 5 primary aluminium...
Australia’s Metro Mining announced today that the company has acquired Gulf Alumina Ltd, taking full ownership of the company that it did not own previously. The company will proceed to combine Gulf’s Skardon River project tenements with its own Bauxite Hills mine. Metro Mining will incorporate the use of Gulf’s existing infrastructure into the bankable feasibility study. Bankable feasibility study is likely to complete in the coming weeks. Metro offered Gulf 62c in cash, or 52c in cash plus one share in Metro, for each Gulf share held and ASX approved the takeover after considering the renewed offer. Metro Mining’s Bauxite Hills mineral reserve has now stands at 96.5-million tonnes after adding the Skardon River project with direct shipping ore resources estimated at 128.8-million tonnes.
