AlCircle News Edited By "Pratyusha Chatterjee"
A writer with 5+ years of experience in the communication industry, Pratyusha Chatterjee has indulged in content from the business, lifestyle, travel industries and more. Apart from news and content, Pratyusha is immensely fond of participating in cultural events and managing them.
Vedanta Aluminium sets the benchmark for sustainable water management in India — pushes for 'Water Positivity by 2030'
In a country where water scarcity is both a rural crisis and an industrial liability, few sectors are as thirsty and as scrutinised as the aluminium industry. With primary aluminium production requiring anywhere between 20,000 to 40,000 litres of water per tonne, efficient water use isn’t just an operational concern; it’s a socio-environmental imperative. While reliance on dated, extractive water systems and rudimentary discharge mechanisms usage remains a key focus area to work upon as an industry, Vedanta Aluminium has helmed sustainable operations with a narrative of an apt blend of recycling, zero-liquid discharge, and community water stewardship. Image for representational purposes only What typically happens to water in aluminium production Water is integral across the aluminium...
Hydro’s hiring freeze, plant closure and curbs only one side of the plan Thus, the expansions and the investments...
Norsk Hydro has been in the headlines for contradictory reasons. On the one hand, they have been announcing closures, curbs, and a temporary hiring freeze, and on the other, they have made news for investments, expansions, and inaugurations in the past few months. Given Norsk Hydro’s repeated reaffirmations of its strategic commitment to its 2030 vision, it is time to assess its actions’ substance and scope. Image for referential purposes only The most recent announcement made by Hydro is that it is temporarily freezing its hiring of ‘white collar workers’ for affected areas. However, it has also been mentioned that hiring in the Business areas will remain unaffected. This measure, as mentioned in the official press release, is explicitly undertaken to strengthen the company’s “future...
Aluminium influence and overall commodity consumption cushion Japan’s Q1 GDP, shrinkage is lower than feared
Japan’s economic engine, though sputtering, is not stalling just yet. Revised data from the Cabinet Office show that Japan’s GDP shrank by only 0.2 per cent annualised in Q1 2025, sharply better than the earlier estimate of 0.7 per cent, and just enough to keep recessionary panic at bay. The improvement was primarily driven by a surprise uptick in private consumption, which accounts for over half the nation’s GDP. From restaurants to gaming, updated spending data lifted consumption growth to 0.1 per cent, reversing the earlier flat-line reading. Image for representational purposes only What’s more, domestic demand contributed 0.8 percentage point to growth, effectively offsetting the 0.8 percentage point drag from net exports. However, the modest rebound is unlikely to shift the Bank of...
India-US trade: Can India & US seal the deal? July 9 deadline fuels enduring partnership optimism, albeit past turbulence
India’s talks with the US for a Bilateral Trade Agreement, which would smoothen gross exports worth USD 86.5 billion (FY 2024–25 data, up 11.6 per cent from FY 23–24), are walking on a double-edged sword. Image source: Linkedin (Handle: Harnam Prajapati) With the progression of a second Trump administration, there is a renewed and pressing push for comprehensive trade relations. Current high-level negotiations are underway, with India and the US aiming to finalise an interim three-phase trade agreement by June 25, ahead of a potential July 9 deadline for the USA’s 26 per cent reciprocal tariff on India, which is currently suspended. While Indian exports still face America’s standard 10 per cent baseline tariff, discussions are focused on securing duty reductions across labour-intensive...
Energy ‘transition’ or ‘triage’ — which do they choose? A global journey from idealism to realpolitik
When energy heavyweights, financiers and geopolitical policymakers convened at CERAWeek 2025, they confronted a truth too long ignored: the path to a net-zero future is being redrawn by geopolitics, national security imperatives and a resurgent fossil-fuel lobby. The publication titled ‘The energy transition’s disrupted path forward’ by S&P Global Commodity Insights, which gathers all the key points from the convention, it is clear that what emerges is not an orderly glide to clean power, but a fractured landscape where ‘energy security’ increasingly trumps decarbonisation. For industry leaders and investors, this realignment demands recalibrated strategies, deeper risk assessments and a readiness to pivot on both policy and market fronts. Image for representational purposes only (Source:...
Has Alcoa’s 2024 been sustainable enough? A deep dive into the aluminium giant’s environmental and ESG scorecard
In a metal market battered by volatile prices, inflationary stress, and escalating scrutiny over climate credentials, Alcoa’s 2024 Sustainability Report arrives not just as a routine corporate checklist but as a statement of ambition — and, in some areas, quiet disruption. With operations sprawling across 30 global facilities — from bauxite mines to smelters and casthouses — the US-based aluminium major shoulders more than just metal output; it shoulders a reputation. But does Alcoa’s latest ESG report genuinely reflect industry leadership, or is it a slick exercise in eco-branding? Let’s unpack the facts, compare performance, and critically assess how the numbers stack up. Renewable power — a benchmark or a baseline? In 2024, 86 per cent of the electricity powering Alcoa’s smelters came...
America’s last alumina refinery yet again riddled with unlawful waste disposal allegation
Updated on 18/07/2025: State environmental regulators have recorded fresh violations at Atlantic Alumina’s Gramercy refinery in Louisiana, the only operational alumina refinery in the United States. A compliance inspection by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) on May 29 documented nine violations, including discharges from red mud waste lakes, unmaintained levees, and chemical overflows into public drainage systems. This follows an earlier LDEQ report from March, which found that toxic waste from the site had entered a drainage ditch leading to the Blind River Swamp. Water samples from that ditch contained arsenic levels nearly 1,400% above the EPA’s safety threshold. Inspectors noted that “multiple discharges from Red Mud Lake 3 into Outfall 003” had occurred, while...
Why CBAM’s scrap loophole is a data and enforcement crisis waiting to erupt
For all its ambition, the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) suffers from a problem not uncommon in modern climate regulation: data complexity outpacing policy design. In our previous editorial derived from the same study by European Aluminium , we have explored how aluminium scrap has become a billion-euro backdoor for foreign producers to undercut CBAM fees and outprice European producers. But underneath the circumvention tactics lies an even bigger story, one of missing traceability, legal grey zones, and statistical blind spots that could seriously undermine CBAM’s integrity over the next decade. This time, we delve deeper into why CBAM’s loophole isn’t just about policy, it’s about enforcement infrastructure, legal classification, and the technical debt of...
The US delay on EU duties signals strategy, not softening ‘brinkmanship’
The Trump administration has put a temporary lid on an economic powder keg by delaying the proposed 50 per cent tariffs on European Union exports until July 9, 2025. However, the world will have faced the same tariff rate card, specifically for aluminium and steel, starting June 04. Image for referential purposes only This last-minute pause by the US president, after what is being called a good conversation with EU president Ursula Von Der Leyen, deemed more than just diplomatic prudence. It transmitted the aura of a calculated US strategy to press Brussels into a more favourable trade arrangement without triggering immediate retaliation from a bloc already navigating economic headwinds and geopolitical constraints. Trump’s policy by provocation Earlier in May, former President Donald...
Here’s the trick! Study reveals how aluminium scrap, with a Billion-Euro backdoor, is potent to loosen EU’s Carbon Border for importers
When the European Union unveiled its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), the ambition was clear: to build a fortress against carbon leakage, shield domestic industries from unfair competition, and incentivise global decarbonisation. It was heralded as the world’s most sophisticated climate tariff, with a complex, bold, and precise outline. Image for referential purposes only But as the legislation transitions from theory to implementation, a critical vulnerability has emerged. And it’s not in exotic energy systems or abstract accounting tricks. It’s in something far more mundane, yet deceptively potent — aluminium scrap. As for the current plan, CBAM creates a multi-billion-euro arbitrage opportunity for foreign aluminium producers. And the loophole is alarmingly simple. Both...
Alcoa’s $1B tax win over Australia: A big save for the global business in a volatile time
In a blow to Australia’s aggressive multinational tax crackdown, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has abandoned its six-year-long legal fight with Alcoa over alleged transfer pricing abuses, marking a rare high-stakes defeat for Canberra in its broader battle against US corporate giants. With Alcoa now set to receive USD 107 million in tax refunds, the decision has reverberated through both the aluminium sector and the global tax justice landscape. Image for representational purposes only But beneath the surface of a billion-dollar ruling lies a deeper narrative, one that cuts across resource nationalism, transfer pricing frameworks, and a geopolitical tug-of-war over who gets to tax global profits in the age of cross-border supply chains. The dispute and what was at stake At the...
India’s industrial exports, including aluminium, to the UK are at risk from 2027 carbon duties
India and the United Kingdom have recently concluded negotiations on a long-anticipated Free Trade Agreement (FTA) aimed at unlocking bilateral trade potential and reducing tariff barriers. The deal is expected to usher in smoother market access for Indian goods, from textiles and engineering products to aluminium and steel. But even before implementation begins, an invisible tariff threatens to erode these gains: the United Kingdom’s upcoming Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Image for representational purposes only (Source: https://x.com/narendramodi/) Set to take effect from January 1, 2027, the UK CBAM is designed to level the playing field between domestic and imported goods by placing a carbon cost on high-emission imports. In doing so, it mirrors the European Union’s CBAM,...
GAC’s 2Mt bauxite pile-up in Guinea: What built it, what’s blocking it, and what could break the deadlock
In October 2024, Guinean customs authorities suspended bauxite exports from Guinea Alumina Corporation (GAC), a subsidiary of Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), due to unresolved issues with the Guinean government, chiefly around concerns over GAC’s failure to progress on its commitment to build a domestic alumina refinery. As a result, GAC halted exports, and by early 2025, around 2 million tonnes of bauxite had accumulated at the port in Kamsar, unable to be shipped. Image for referential purposes only Located in northwestern Guinea, GAC operates a vast 690-square-kilometre mining concession that feeds directly into international supply chains, thanks to a dedicated rail link to its port at Kamsar. Since exports began in 2019, GAC has become a key supplier of bauxite, the primary ore for...
Price charts in India hit by ripple effect of April’s routine of alumina and aluminium maintenance season in China
Aluminium prices in India nudged up 0.8 per cent to INR 238.9 per kilogram, buoyed by a chain reaction unfolding in China’s refinery landscape. But this isn’t just another pricing blip, and it’s a mirror to something deeper: the calculated routine of alumina supply, energy bottlenecks, and macro market muscle. As Chinese refineries go under the wrench and global production gears shift, the aluminium market is entering a new price reality, one which is calibrated not just by output but by strategic pause. Image for representational purposes only Maintenance or market masterstroke? From late March through April 2025, nearly 11.5 million tonnes of Chinese alumina capacity went offline for maintenance, according to Shanghai Metals Market (SMM). Far from a routine fix-up, this mass downtime...
Guinea pulls the plug by cancelling 129 mining licences, and it seems to be just the beginning
Guinea has just made a move that could send tremors through global commodity corridors, cancelling from 50 plus to 129 mineral exploration permits in a single sweep. No clarifications. No negotiations. Just a decree from the military-led government aimed at “tightening control” over the West African nation’s mineral treasure trove. A senior official at the Ministry of Mines said the move was to free unused resources for other more potent investors. “We’ve simplified it by digitising the whole system, which can now be better controlled,” the official has disclosed to Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity. If you think this is just another bureaucratic reshuffle, think again. This is Guinea signalling that it’s done playing host to dormant licences and absentee investors. The...
Aluwind Infra-Tech posts 51.59% Y-o-Y revenue surge in H2 FY25, inks pact with Hindalco
In an era where aluminium innovation and sustainability are reshaping India’s construction skyline, Aluwind Infra-Tech Limited has firmly planted its flag as a growth engine with both financial momentum and strategic clarity. The Pune-based fenestration and façade solutions provider reported a stellar 51.59 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) revenue growth in the second half of FY25, backed by expanding operations, rising urban demand and a slew of forward-looking moves that signal its evolution from a project executor to an ecosystem builder. H2 FY25: Robust revenue, strong margins, strategic vision In the second half of FY25, Aluwind clocked INR 6.37 billion (USD 76.7 million) in revenue, up from INR 4.21 billion (USD 50.63 million) in H2 FY24. EBITDA also rose 37.63 per cent to INR 83.47...
Q1 2025 global EV battery market: China’s dominance intensifies, elbowing Japan and Korea
In the first quarter of 2025, the global electric vehicle (EV) battery market experienced a considerable surge, with total installed capacity reaching 221.8 GWh, which is a 38.8 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2024. Today, we delve into the leading brands and their performance in 2025, which has aided in the surge against all odds. Country-wise, China has shoved South Korea and Japan in the sustainable battery race. China’s battery manufacturers lead the charge Chinese battery manufacturers have solidified their dominance in the global EV battery market: CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited): Maintained its position as the world’s leading EV battery supplier, with an installed capacity of 84.9 GWh, marking a 40.2 per cent year-over-year increase. CATL’s...
HackberryPi CM5 vs Raspberry Pi: Pricing, features, and Why the former is a gamechanger for SBCs
That’s the quiet revolution behind the latest HackberryPi CM5 — a thinner, aluminium-enclosed single-board computer designed by open-source innovator Zitao Liu. It’s not just a cosmetic facelift. This redesign aims to fix what Raspberry Pi users have griped about for years: thermal throttling, limited onboard connectivity, and, yes, the boxy plastic shells. Image for representational purposes only (source: https://www.hackster.io/) Unveiled on Hackster.io, the new HackberryPi CM5 shrinks the footprint but upgrades the muscle. It retains compatibility with Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4) standards but wraps it in a machined aluminium chassis that doubles as a heatsink. “The thinner form factor and the full-aluminium body improve thermal dissipation while reducing bulk,” notes Zitao....
