From just 2 million vehicles in 2018 to a projected 35.4 million in 2030, the rise of electric vehicles (EVs) is reshaping the global automotive industry - and changing how much aluminium goes into every car. As automakers expand EV production, aluminium is finding new applications in battery enclosures, electric-drive housings, vehicle bodies and structural components, making the metal an increasingly important part of the industry's transition. Global sales of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are projected to reach 23.3 million units in 2026, up 11 per cent from 21 million in 2025. Sales are forecast to rise to 26.1 million in 2027, 29.2 million in 2028 and 32.2 million in 2029, before reaching 35.4 million in 2030. The market has grown...
LME aluminium prices moved higher on October 23, with cash and futures contracts posting gains. The Asian Reference Price also advanced, while alumina Platts prices edged up further. Opening stocks and live warrants changed little, although cancelled warrants declined. The cash bid rose 0.33 per cent to USD 3,042.50 per tonne from USD 3,032.50 per tonne . The cash offer also increased 0.33 per cent to USD 3,043 per tonne from USD 3,033 per tonne. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: " Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook " Three-month aluminium prices also strengthened. The bid climbed 0.31 per cent to USD 3,017 per tonne from USD 3,007.50 per tonne, while the offer advanced...
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The financial reality: In an industry where electricity constitutes 35 per cent of total operating costs, a mere 1 per cent AI-driven reduction in specific power consumption yields an immediate USD 4 million to USD 5 million in annual savings for a one-million-tonne smelter. The "Black Box" trap: Relying on opaque deep-learning algorithms is dangerous. The industry is pivoting to "Explainable AI" (XAI), which provides transparent reasoning for predictive maintenance, achieving verifiable ROI in under 3 months. The vendor hype: Software vendors routinely underestimate the brutal physical realities of the potroom. Digital twins will suffer from catastrophic model drift and hardware failure if sensors are not engineered to survive 950°C temperatures, corrosive alumina...
JPMorgan has increased its long position in Aluminum Corporation of China (02600.HK) to 6.04 per cent from 5.72 per cent after acquiring an additional 12.6864 million H-shares. According to a filing disclosed by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 8, the shares were purchased on July 2 through both on-exchange and off-exchange transactions. The average purchase price stood at HKD 7.4087 per share for on-exchange transactions and HKD 7.4168 per share for off-exchange transactions. The acquisition was valued at approximately HKD 93.9896 million (USD 11.9 million). Following the transaction, JPMorgan’s total holding in Aluminum Corporation of China rose to 239 million shares. Why does the transaction require disclosure? Under Hong Kong Stock Exchange requirements, major shareholders -...
Itochu and Daikin Industries will jointly start a business to recover aluminium from used commercial air conditioners in Japan. The initiative is aimed at increasing the use of recycled materials as Japan looks to reduce its dependence on imported aluminium amid supply chain disruptions linked to conflict in the Middle East. Nearly one-third of Japan's aluminium imports currently come from the region. Under the project, Itochu Metals, a subsidiary of Itochu, will collect used Daikin commercial air conditioners from office buildings and other commercial facilities. The units will be dismantled, and components such as heat exchangers and motors will be separated. Specialised scrap processors will then recover aluminium, as well as iron and copper. Commercial air conditioners are not covered...
The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) and the Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) have urged the US Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service to tighten the eligibility criteria for domestic content bonus credits. Submitting a joint white paper to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the organisations called for aluminium extrusion for solar module frames to be carried out within the US to qualify as domestically manufactured components under the Section 45Y and 48E domestic content bonus credits . The industry groups argue that the absence of clear guidance has created a loophole allowing imported aluminium extrusions to qualify for domestic incentives after undergoing only minor fabrication processes, such as cutting to length and punching holes, within the US. The global...
LME aluminium prices moved higher on July 8, with both cash and three-month contracts recording gains from the previous session, amid renewed geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East. Market sentiment remained cautious as reports of fresh attacks and heightened tensions between the US and Iran raised concerns over the durability of ongoing peace efforts and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global energy and commodity shipments. The LME aluminium cash bid price rose to USD 3,140.50 per tonne on July 8 from USD 3,118 per tonne on July 7, marking a day-on-day increase of 0.72 per cent. The cash offer price climbed 0.71 per cent to USD 3,141 per tonne from USD 3,119 per tonne. A similar upward trend was seen in the three-month contract. The LME aluminium...
Vedanta Aluminium was seen as the “crown jewel” of Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta demerger. But less than a month after listing, it has become the weakest performer among the four newly listed entities. Since its June 15 debut, the stock has fallen 12 per cent from its listing price of INR 527, wiping out more than INR 250 billion in investor wealth. Its demerged siblings have moved in the opposite direction. Vedanta Power has gained 9 per cent from its listing price of INR 42, Vedanta Iron & Steel has surged 84 per cent from INR 22, and Vedanta Oil & Gas has risen 10 per cent from INR 39. The divergence raises a key question: why is Vedanta Aluminium struggling when brokerages remain positive on its longer-term outlook? Aluminium price correction weighs on the stock The fall in Vedanta Aluminium...
Italian metals sorting technology specialist SGM Magnetics S.p.A. has introduced a new recovery system or sorting lineto extract commercial metals from salt slag fines, a byproduct of secondary aluminium production, addressing one of the industry's most difficult recycling streams. SGM noted, “After crushing, grinding and classification, the fine fraction can still contain recoverable metallic aluminium and other valuable metals” during secondary aluminium smelting. However, the recovery has been a difficult feat owing to the high salt content, corrosive nature, abrasive dust and the micro-particle size of the fines. According to SGM, particles measuring below 2 millimetres are especially difficult, as the metallic content is often irregularly shaped, rendering separation challenging....
Canada’s merchandise trade surplus expanded to CAD 4.2 billion in May 2026, its strongest level in four years, as a sharp rise in unwrought aluminium and aluminium alloy exports helped lift the country’s overall outbound trade to a record high. According to the latest data from Statistics Canada, the trade surplus widened from CAD 3.4 billion in April, marking the country’s third consecutive month in positive territory. Total merchandise exports increased 0.9 per cent month-on-month to a record CAD 77.1 billion, while imports edged 0.2 per cent lower to CAD 72.9 billion. For the aluminium industry, May brought a particularly strong increase in overseas shipments. Exports of unwrought aluminium and aluminium alloys surged 50.7 per cent during the month, making the category the largest...
Jamaica's Minister of Agriculture, Floyd Green, has announced that the reopening and modernisation of the Alpart alumina refinery has moved a step forward following meetings with officials of JISCO and the Government of Gansu Province during his recent visit to China. Speaking in Parliament, Green said JISCO has confirmed its plans to carry out a two-phase modernisation programme to bring the refinery back into operation and upgrade it into a modern alumina production facility. The first phase of the project will involve an investment of about USD 490 million. Planned work includes upgrading major processing units, improving plant infrastructure, modernising the power generation system, introducing dry-stacking technology for bauxite residue management, and rehabilitating rail and port...
Irrespective of China’s economy, which is said to be growing at a relatively slower pace in the past few years, one thing which has been consistent for the country is that it still firmly holds the position of the world's largest aluminium foil producer, consumer and exporter. For businesses that are trying to determine where the next demand wave of aluminium foil will be, an important question continues to emerge: What is sustaining China's leadership when traditional growth drivers are evolving? Aluminium foil, beyond just the packaging sector, is seen to have a rapid expansion in electric mobility, energy storage, advanced manufacturing and strategic industrial policy. As per AL Circle's recently updated report, " Aluminium Foil and its End Uses Current Trends and Forecast till 2030 ",...
Recycling non-ferrous metals like aluminium, lead, and plastics is becoming more important because it reduces the need for raw materials, improves recovery, and supports circular production. Aluminium recycling is especially valuable because it uses much less energy than primary aluminium production and helps cut emissions while supplying material to construction, transport, packaging, and engineering. Modern recycling plants use mechanical separation, shredding, decoating, melting and casting technologies to improve metal recovery and reduce waste. Italian engineering company GME Technology (Gianni Mori Engineering) designs recycling plants for aluminium scrap, used lead-acid batteries and plastic recovery, with a major focus on aluminium processing equipment. Its systems are used to...
As aluminium producers place greater emphasis on recycled metal, scrap has become an increasingly important part of the wider aluminium value chain. Against this backdrop, Germany entered 2026 with a shift in its export picture, as aluminium scrap shipments moved higher after declining on an annual basis in 2025. Germany exported 311,491 tonnes of aluminium scrap to the global market in Q1 2026, up marginally by 0.5 per cent from 310,057 tonnes in Q1 2025. The increase was more pronounced on a quarterly basis, with exports rising 8.8 per cent from 286,285 tonnes in Q4 2025. The change in direction came at an interesting time for Germany’s aluminium industry. Recycled aluminium production weakened, semi-finished output declined and demand from automotive, construction and mechanical...
Canada and Japan are deepening their critical minerals alliance, seeking to reduce their dependence on Chinese supplies. At Canada's largest-ever trade mission to Tokyo and the Asia-Pacific region, companies from both countries signed commercial agreements worth over CAD 1 billion (USD 706.11 million), exploring joint initiatives to secure future supplies of key minerals. The delegation comprised around 300 participants representing about 180 companies and organisations. Collaboration in areas including mining investments and long-term offtake agreements was discussed, including the potential shared stockpiling of critical minerals like gallium and graphite. Canada's International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu confirmed that both countries are evaluating the feasibility of joint...
The first part of this series traced the sharp rise in bauxite trade volumes, the growing concentration of supply from Guinea and Australia, and the destination patterns shaping the global market. But the increase in tonnage tells only one side of the story. As more bauxite entered the trade system, costs moved in the opposite direction, while stock accumulation in China, expanding export infrastructure in Guinea, disruption to UAE-bound flows and the prospect of tighter Guinean export controls added new dimensions to the market. Part 2 looks at these developments through the available cost, inventory, infrastructure, trade-flow and forecast data. The source-by-source comparison shows that the overall decline in China's average import cost occurred alongside lower average costs from...
Momentum is building within the European Parliament as Aughinish Alumina faces a European Union vote to decide the future of its exports to Russia. Several Members of the Parliament, resolute to urge a full ban on the Russia-bound shipments, add fresh pressure on both Brussels and Dublin. It forms part of a non-binding resolution on Ukraine due to be voted on in Strasbourg on Wednesday . The outcome would not immediately change EU law, but broad parliamentary backing would increase pressure on the European Commission to include alumina exports in the 21st Sanctions Package on Russia. Explore the relevance of red mud in the sustainable aluminium industry in A Comprehensive Analysis of Bauxite Residue (Red Mud): Sustainability, Resource Recovery and Strategic Recommendations Broad political...
The US Department of Energy (DOE) has funded USD 75 million to five pilot-scale projects aimed at extracting rare earth elements and other critical minerals, including aluminium, from coal waste and coal-based feedstocks. The initiative indicates the nation’s efforts to strengthen the domestic critical minerals supply chain. The funding marks a phase of a USD 275 million programme announced in November 2025 to support pilot-scale recovery of critical minerals and materials from industrial and coal byproducts across the US. Discover: The Gulf aluminium market risks, China impact, alumina supply, carbon costs, and logistics disruptions shaping pricing and trade in Gulf Disruption Roadmap Five pilot projects selected The selected projects fall under the category of Mines & Metals...
Aluminium du Maroc is a Moroccan company that makes aluminium profiles and related products for the construction and industrial sectors. It turns raw aluminium into finished and semi-finished products for builders, manufacturers and installers in Morocco, and also sells to some export markets. Its business is closely linked to construction activity, infrastructure spending and industrial growth in North Africa. The company's main activity is aluminium extrusion. In this process, aluminium billets are heated and pushed through dies to create different shapes. These profiles are used in windows, doors, façade systems, curtain walls, partitions and other building applications. By processing primary aluminium into finished products, Aluminium du Maroc connects metal suppliers with companies...
A proposed USD 4 billion primary aluminium smelter at the Port of Inola in northeastern Oklahoma is moving through technical studies and regulatory approvals, with developers aiming to begin construction in 2027. If completed, the project would become the first new primary aluminium smelter built in the United States in nearly 50 years and significantly expand the country's domestic aluminium production capacity. The project, known as Oklahoma Primary Aluminum, is being developed through a partnership between Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) of the United Arab Emirates and Century Aluminum of the United States. Company officials said technical studies began in December last year and are continuing alongside engineering work and regulatory approvals. Project Director Ziad Fares said, "We...
