The global aluminium industry is entering a new phase of competition, with access to raw materials, affordable energy and production capacity increasingly shaping the position of major producers. China is preparing a large overseas smelting expansion, Ghana is attracting investment in its bauxite reserves, and India and Vietnam are advancing new aluminium projects. However, the expansion drive comes against a complicated market backdrop. Alumina prices have fallen sharply, energy and logistics costs remain significant, and trade policies are reshaping the economics of production and exports. Together, these developments point to a market in which securing resources is only part of the challenge; converting them into competitive aluminium will matter just as much. Africa’s bauxite...
Bell Bay Aluminium (BBA), Australia's oldest aluminium smelter, is reviewing its workforce and offering redundancies for a small number of positions, just over a month after receiving an AUD 200 million (USD 137.52 million) government support package aimed at securing the facility's future until at least 2031. Up to 10 roles are understood to have been affected by the review, although the smelter is expected to retain its existing workforce of approximately 550 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees. Some redeployment opportunities will also be available, while the positions identified are not understood to involve frontline services. The changes reportedly include some former participants in Bell Bay Aluminium's graduate programme. Rio Tinto, which operates the smelter near George Town in...
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This week's changes have impacted different sectors of the aluminium end-user, from transportation to packaging. Let's take a look at each of them individually. To begin with scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) of the US Department of Energy have created an aluminium-nickel (Al-Ni) molten salt battery named “freeze-thaw battery”. On the other hand Taichi Kuma, a Japanese architect, has unveiled the MAKU trailers, which are lightweight and can easily contain a distant work office or radio station. Under the transport sector of end user, Allez Spirit 2022 is all set to set a new record for the aluminium road bike sector. The highlights show that the industry is eventually gaining its pace and is trying to move ahead. The MAKU trailer is the latest innovation in...
Following the military coup in the West African nation, Guinea, which is now ruled by the interim government and recognized as the world’s highest exporter of bauxite, has demanded from international mining organizations for submission of plans for bauxite production to generate alumina within the nation by May 2022. The leading producer of bauxite in Africa and also in the world has been endeavouring to channel its mineral abundance into national economic development by forcing organizations to construct local plants in the recent years that will transform bauxite into high-grade alumina. According to the statement given by Guinea’s interim government, clearly says that the companies that need to remain apprehensive about the building of alumina refinery incorporate Guinea's top two...
The aluminium downstream sector had a lot going on this week from Hindalco’s aluminium billets and wire rod prices shrinking by 2% to the Zimbabwean President visiting his country’s aluminium wire assets on a quest to encourage people for a sustainable future. According to Shanghai PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index) reports, China witnessed a month-on-month rise in the aluminium sector but overall fell to achieve standard points on a year-on-year basis. Granco Clark supplied APEL Extrusions, Inc. with a complete Heating, Handling, and UBE Press System while in Malaysia Press Metals vouched to raise US$231 million to rejuvenate its machining facilities in order to cope with the Russia-Ukraine crisis situation. War uses up all the essential commodity products marking a rise in public demand,...
BMW group is advancing towards sustainability. Starting in 2024, it is planning to employ cast aluminium wheels made of 100% renewable energy for its BMW and MINI brands. To date, wheels have been responsible for around 5% of supply chain CO2 emissions. These emissions will be cut in half if the global auto brand switches to more sustainable products that use green energy. “Green power is one of the biggest levers for reducing CO2 emissions in our supply chain. We have already signed more than 400 contracts with our suppliers, including suppliers of wheels and aluminium, requiring them to use green power,” says Joachim Post, BMW AG's Purchasing and Supplier Network member. MINI will be a pioneer in this industry in 2023 when the new generation of the MINI Countryman will debut light-alloy...
SIG a leading aseptic carton packaging solutions provider from Switzerland revealed its intention to invest in a new plant in India. This move is brewing high hopes in the company since it has come under observation that India is one of the fastest growing markets for the packaging industry. But the positivity was not backed by any actual details about the investment. "After opening our second plant in China and starting construction of a plant in Mexico for the North American market, India is our first priority for the next investment in a new packaging plant. The decision-making process is still ongoing, but we are very confident that we will be able to start building a plant in India in the near future," exclaimed Samuel Sigrist, Global CEO of SIG Group. The construction period would...
The primary aluminium sector has witnessed a mixed yet significant response this week both in terms of prices and other activities. If on one hand, Hindalco’s aluminium ingot price had escalated by INR 3,250 per tonne after 4 successive downfalls, LME aluminium benchmark price had stayed on the downward side. The price fell from US$ US$3,444 per tonne to US$3,395 per tonne. On Monday, April 4, both the LME aluminium cash bid price and the LME aluminium official settlement price fell 1.12% to US$3,443.50 per tonne and US$3,444 per tonne, respectively. Apart from this, the news of EGA and Ma’aden moving towards greener aluminium smelting technology shows that the aluminium industry is paying more attention to sustainable production. As a knock-on effects from the Russia-Ukraine crisis, LME...
After a sharp cut of INR 7,250 per tonne across all the aluminium products on April 8, Vedanta Limited has lifted its aluminium prices, with effect from April 9. The company has increased its aluminium ingot price by INR 4,000 per tonne to INR 294,000- 341,500 per tonne on April 9 as against INR 290,000- 337,500 on April 8. Vedanta has also elevated its aluminium wire rod price by INR 4,000 per tonne on April 9 to sell the product at INR 301,500- 309,000 per tonne. On April 8, the company’s aluminium wire rod price stood at INR 297,500- 305,000 per tonne. Since the latest price revision, Vedanta is selling its aluminium billets at INR 302,000 per tonne, up by INR 4,000 per tonne from INR 298,000 per tonne on April 8. Vedanta Limited links its aluminium products and aluminium ingot prices...
LME aluminium benchmark price continued to trend down this week from US$3,444 per tonne to US$3,395 per tonne. Both LME aluminium cash bid price and LME aluminium official settlement price started the week on Monday, April 4, with a drop of 1.12 per cent to US$3,443.50 per tonne and US$3,444 per tonne. On Tuesday, April 5, both the prices further slipped to US$3.414 per tonne and US$3,415 per tonne but rose intermittently by 0.85 per cent and 0.83 per cent to US$3,443 per tonne and US$3,443.50 per tonne. On Thursday, April 7, LME aluminium cash bid price decreased by US$99 per tonne to US$3,344 per tonne, while LME aluminium official settlement price declined by US$97.50 per tonne to US$3,346 per tonne. However, they closed the week on April 8 higher at US$3,393 per tonne and US$3,395 per...
India’s largest aluminium producer, Vedanta Aluminium freighted its introductory 4000-tonne fly ash consignment rake to one of the plants of Holcim India – ACC Cement, Chaibasa Cement Works to produce low-carbon cement. ACC ranks as India’s leading cement producer. The aluminium company stated that this is a drive of Vedanta Jharsuguda’s waste-to-wealth incumbency and certifies worthwhile utilisation of fly ash, an industrial by-product in the circular economy path. The thermal power producers generate electricity by using coal and fly ash is a by-product. Vedanta’s Jharsuguda aluminium smelter consumes energy from its coal-fuelled captive power plant. Now, the implicit properties of fly ash can be used for upgrading product quality, sustaining energy, water, and other beneficial...
The Irish Government has declared that the parent companies of Aughinish Alumina are apparently not going to be hit by the next round of US sanctions in spite of the decision taken by Brussels to impose penalties on oligarch Oleg Deripaska. EU’s retributive measures against Mr. Deripaska, a billionaire from Russia, are constantly keeping the Co Limerick-based company under high pressure. But its mother unit, Moscow-based Rusal and its majority shareholder EN+ seem ready to avoid sanctions at this time. “We do not believe that the company Rusal and its majority shareholder EN+ will face any restrictions in the forthcoming round of sanctions,” the Department of Enterprise said last night in response to questions. “The State continues to engage with the company as it works on the development...
Rio Tinto has taken full control of an alumina refinery in Queensland that it shares with United Co. Rusal International PJSC, thus denying the Russian aluminium giant access to a vital raw material source. “As a result of the Australian government’s sanction measures, Rio Tinto has taken on 100 per cent of the capacity and governance of Queensland Alumina until further notice,” Rio said in an emailed statement. According to a source familiar with the situation, Queensland Alumina's (QAL) management had urged Rio to step in and take full control of the business after receiving legal advice that the operational structure could not comply with Australia's sanctions. When sanctions are lifted, control will revert to the old joint-venture operational structure, according to the source. While...
Niche Fusina Rolled Products S.r.l. (Niche Fusina), a newly conjugated Italian company commissioned under partners of DADA Holdings LLC (DADA), Concord Resources Limited (Concord) and Invitalia-Agenzia Nazionale per l’attrazione degli investment e lo sviluppo d’impresa S.p.A. (the National Agency for Inward Investment and Economic Development in Italy, Invitalia) , obtained the business unit of Slim Fusina Rolling S.r.l. (Slim Fusina), which mainly deals with the production and sale of aluminium alloy rolled products. The acquirement took place on March 31, 2022, through an extremely tremulous procedure and was judged under the ‘composition with creditors proceeding’ (procedura di concordato preventivo), which was pending before the court of Venice - Bankruptcy Section. Niche Fusina...
In January 2022, the United States domestic primary aluminium production stood at 82,000 tonnes, reflecting a second monthly rise of 3,000 tonnes or 3.8 per cent, found the US Census Bureau. In December 2021, the United States primary aluminium production was 79,000 tonnes, up by 4,000 tonnes from the previous month. On a year-on-year calculation, the United States primary aluminium output in January 2022 was 4,000 tonnes or 5.13 per cent higher than 78,000 tonnes. Total aluminium recovered from scrap in January 2022 was 266,000 tonnes, slightly less than the revised amount in December 2021 and essentially unchanged from the revised amounts in January 2021. Of the total amount recovered in January 2022, 151,000 tonnes were recovered from new scrap and 115,000 tonnes from old scrap. In...
On Friday, April 8, Crown Holdings, Inc.'s Crown Beverage Can Brazil Division subsidiary has received ASI Chain of Custody Standard Certification for the fabrication of aluminium can bodies and ends. The other six plants certified by ASI in October 2021 are Cabreva, S. Paulo; Estancia, Sergipe; Ponta Grossa, Parana; Rio Verde, Goias; Teresina, Piaui; the can end plant in Manaus, Amazonas; and the corporate office in Cabreva, S. Paulo. The six facilities produce a total of 10.9 billion cans every year. DNV Business Assurance Services UK Ltd conducted an impartial third-party audit of the Crown Holdings, Inc plants. The ASI Certification programme is the first complete voluntary sustainability standard project for the aluminium value chain, and it was established after considerable...
According to the Shanghai Metals Market, China’s social inventories of primary aluminium have continued to grow this week by 25,000 tonnes across eight major consumption areas, including SHFE warrants. Thus, SMM data shows the inventories have come in at 1.066 million tonnes, as of Thursday, April 7, compared to 1.041 million tonnes a week ago, March 31. The rise in China’s week-on-week primary aluminium inventories is contributed by disrupted local transportation causing irregular shipments. The chart below indicates the current status of primary aluminium inventories across China in more details: As the above data demonstrates, Wuxi has seen a build-up this week of 36,000 tonnes to stand at 486,000 tonnes, while the provinces have either seen downfalls or restraints this week. For...
In a list put together by the Institute of Chartered Professional Managers of Sri Lanka (CPM), for the period 2020-2021, Swisstek Aluminium Limited has ranked among the top 10 best-managed companies in the country. Under the motif of ‘Back to Business in the New Normal’, CPM’s Best Management Practices Awards has felicitated Swisstek Aluminium as a winner of the ‘Top 10’ awards for the implementation of the most exemplary management practices in the country. To fetch data from industries countrywide, CPM called for Sri Lankan firms to submit applications with buoyant management practices taken to survive in the especially tough, Covid-stricken year 2020 and 2021.To manifest the precautionary measurements taken by respective organisations during the outbreak, the participants were asked to...
The Egyptian market welcomed back Technal®, the French brand at the “Technal® World: Sustainability and Building Envelopes" conference held in Cairo this week, to mark the launch of Hydro CIRCAL. With a range of excellent and unique products and collaborations, Technal® is a pioneer provider of aluminium for doors, windows, and building facades in the Egyptian market. "We announced the launch of our latest product Hydro CIRCAL, in Egypt today, the world’s first certified minimum 75% post-consumer recycled Aluminum for doors windows and building facades,” said Sam Robinson, the managing director at Hydro Building Systems for the Middle East, India and Southeast Asia. Zaha Hadid Architects from London, Mohamed Talaat - MT Architects from Egypt, Koltay Facades from Dubai, Front from the...
According to the latest data revealed by the US Geological Survey, the United States’ aluminium scrap imports opened the year in January 2022 with a month-on-month downfall. As per the data shown, the imports decreased by 1,700 tonnes or 3.51 per cent in January to come in at 46,700 tonnes. In December 2021, the United States aluminium scrap imports were 48,400 tonnes, also down by 1,700 tonnes month-on-month from 50,100 tonnes. On a year-on-year calculation, the US imports of aluminium scrap also registered a downfall of 6,600 tonnes or 12.38 per cent from 53,300 tonnes. In the entire year of 2021, the United States imported 680,000 tonnes of aluminium scrap, showed the USGS data. Canada, being the biggest exporter of aluminium scrap to the US, provided with 27,000 tonnes in January...
