ABB has secured two orders from China’s Southwest Aluminum to supply integrated automation and digital technologies for two six-high aluminium cold rolling mills, supporting the manufacturer’s wide-strip production expansion and upgrade. The projects involve a 2,500 mm two-stand mill and a 3,000 mm single-stand mill, with both lines expected to be fully commissioned and operational by the end of 2027. Chongqing-based Southwest Aluminum is a subsidiary of the Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco). The orders build on the longstanding cooperation between ABB and the aluminium producer, with the latest projects focusing on process stability, control precision and production performance. Explore insights and forecasts for the aluminium flat rolled products (FRP) market from our...
India-based PG Foils Limited plans to establish a downstream aluminium manufacturing facility in Bahrain, focusing on electric vehicle (EV) battery foil and pharmaceutical foil production. The proposed investment is expected to expand the kingdom’s aluminium downstream capabilities and strengthen its manufacturing base. Bahrain’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce signed a letter of intent with PG Foils for the project. The agreement was signed by Industry and Commerce Minister Abdullah bin Adel Fakhro and PG Foils Joint Managing Director Sahil Shah during the fourth edition of the Gateway Gulf expo, which opened on November 1 in Manama. Explore: The most comprehensive and forward-looking industry-focused report – Aluminum Foil Market Report Forecast Till 2035 Hosted by the Bahrain...
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Downstream aluminium sector is where the real buzz is right now. The once mighty primary aluminium industries in many regions are currently shifting their focus to downstream manufacturing, and the last week stood a witness of many such changes. Norsk Hydro entered into an agreement with Orkla to purchase Orkla's 50% interest in Sapa for a value of NOK 27 billion. The agreement will give Hydro the full ownership in the global leader in extruded aluminium solutions making Hydro a leading global integrated aluminium company. The acquisition will increase earnings and cash generation from Sapa from the very first day and it would generate synergies of NOK 200 million per year, mainly related to remelt and recycling, reports said. In India, Angul Aluminium Park , a joint venture between...
Sapa, a joint venture of Norsk Hydro, yesterday announced result for the second quarter of 2017. The company’ EBIT for the second quarter stood at NOK 914 million, a significant improvement over the same period last year. Underlying EBIT for the first half of 2017 also improved compared to the same period in 2016. The company said, “The increase was driven by a higher share of value-add business and internal improvements for all business areas.” Net interest-bearing debt stood at NOK 3.1 billion at the end of the quarter. The increase was “mainly reflecting dividend payments of NOK 3 billion to the owners.” The total demand for extruded products in North America increased in the second quarter as compared to the first quarter of 2017 by 3.4 per cent. The increase for this quarter was...
Aluminium extrusion is a process of shaping aluminium alloy by forcing it through a die of the desired cross- section. It is the most popular aluminium shaping process that offers endless possibilities in product design. Aluminium extrusions find it uses in a number of end user sectors such as construction, electrical transportation to name a few. The consumption of aluminium extrusion has increased significantly in the last two decades, aluminium’s malleability and light weight being few of the main reasons. Recently, the Australia Anti-Dumping Commission (ADC), which is under the Australian Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, concluded the investigation into the alleged dumping of aluminium extrusions exported to Australia from Malaysia. Malaysia witnessed a noticeable surge...
The global aluminium powder market is estimated to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 3.51per cent to be valued at US$3453 million by 2021 up from US$2,808 million in 2015. As per documented statistics generated till 2015 end, total aluminium powder production volume reached 363,724 tonnes in 2015. In 2016, the volume was estimated at 589,012 tonnes. According to a market research report, Asia-Pacific region accounted for 44 per cent of the global aluminium powder market share during 2014. In 2015, it grew significantly with only China attributing close to 40 per cent of the world production. Europe’s contribution in 2015 stood at 20.4 per cent and that of North America was estimated at 10.05 per cent. Application-wise, aluminium pigment accounted for 39 per cent of the total powder...
Secondary aluminium prices stabilized this week in Europe, appearing to reach a floor after slipping for several weeks. The key grade of recycled aluminium, ingot 226, reached a peak of Eur1,820-1,880/mt delivered plus credit at the start of April and has fallen week by week over the past three months to a low of Eur1,650-1,700/mt delivered at the end of June. Business is beginning to slow down ahead of the summer turnarounds and holidays, sources said. Sales to larger consumers this week were heard at around Eur1,650-1,670/mt delivered plus credit, while smaller buyers in some areas were paying over Eur1,700/mt delivered. A monthly buyer seeking September quantities was understood to be looking to achieve under Eur1,650/mt delivered, but sellers were reluctant to move much below this...
China is one of the foremost producers of aluminium semis apart from being the biggest manufacturer of primary aluminium. The country’s semi-finished products export hit a peak in 2016. In March 2017, China's aluminium tube (and accessories) exports rose by 21 per cent from the corresponding period previous year to total at 11,773 tonnes, {newsStudioGallery} According to the latest numbers reported by China Customs, the shipments of Chinese unwrought aluminium and aluminium semis fell considerably in June. The exports of unwrought aluminium and aluminium semis stood at 460,000 tonnes in June, drop 79.73 per cent on a yearly basis. The total exports of the same were 2.41 million tonnes in the first six months of 2017, up 5.9 per cent a yearly basis. According to the estimated data, China...
Russia's Minister for Industry and Trade Denis Manturov said in an interview to TASS, that they are interested in the production of aluminium wheels in Russia. The Ministry of Industry plans an initiative of compulsory certification of imported aluminium wheels in order to restrict supplies of counterfeit wheels to the Russian market. Russia exports substantial amount of aluminium due to the weak demand of the same in the domestic industry while it continues to import aluminium products such as automotive wheels in bulk volume. The government will support aluminium powder production for automotive wheels printing on 3D printers. Manturov said, "We will develop production of aluminium powders near aluminium giants. We will focus on supporting companies creating the added value in the first...
The U.S. automakers and suppliers are concerned about a possible decision to impose steep tariffs on imported steel and aluminium predicated on national security reasons, leading to higher costs and sale loss to foreign competitors. The Trump administration review on Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which gives the president broad power to adjust imports if they pose a threat to national security has been creating concern in the manufacturing sector which imports aluminium and steel from other countries to use in their applications. The Commerce Department has to present its findings and recommendations within 270 days and Trump would have another 90 days to decide on a course of action. Washington policy circles are expecting an impending decision, but trade analysts...
The estimated aluminium wire export by Saudi Arabia has witnessed a year-on-year drop since 2015. The Middle East country with a strong aluminium semi-finished and finished product manufacturing base has been fostering the growth of the domestic non-oil industry to support its economy alongside to its main industry- oil. The major Saudi aluminium wire manufacturing companies like Midal Cables, ALUPCO, Riyadh Cables, Bahra Cables Company, and Alfanar, to name a few, have expanded fiercely over the last three years to make their presence felt in the international market. {newsStudioGallery} As per global export-import data, Saudi Arabia’s aluminium wire export reached an estimated total of 9590 tonnes in 2015. In 2016, the volume dropped drastically to stand at 1566 tonnes. In 2017, the...
3D printing has revolutionised the metal manufacturing sector including aluminium. Recently, material scientists from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Rice University in Houston, Texas have developed a new process for creating “damage-tolerant components” made from multiple materials by combining both 3D printing with traditional casting methods. The innovative project titled “Damage-tolerant metallic composites via melt infiltration of additively manufactured preforms,” shows how a fusion of 3D printing with casting process can result in optimized parts which are stronger than purely 3D printed or casted parts. According to the researchers the new two-step process eliminates “issues with intermetallic formation, cracking, and poor resolution” that are common in most 3D...
Shaun Hamer has been appointed Casting Technologist for AluMore, a press release from the company confirms. Hamer, formerly VP Operations and Engineering for Aluminicaste has a 25 year background in aluminum casthouse operations from both the producer and technology supply sides. AluMore is a new venture by several equipment and technology suppliers, including Dynamic Concept, GNA, Advanced Dynamics, Mecfor and Refraco to provide complete solutions to the North American aluminum casthouse operations. The focus of AluMore is to offer single source solutions for producers including audits, engineering support, refurbishment and modernization of existing facilities, and complete turnkey solutions for green and brownfield ventures.
Norsk Hydro have entered into an agreement with Orkla to purchase Orkla's 50% interest in Sapa for a value of NOK 27 billion. This will give Hydro the full ownership in the global leader in extruded aluminium solutions making Hydro a leading global integrated aluminium company with more than 35,000 employees, and activities in around 40 countries. The acquisition is expected to increase earnings and cash generation from Sapa from the very first day and it would generate synergies of NOK 200 million per year, mainly related to remelt and recycling. Hydro has a strong strategic rationale behind the acquisition which would entitle a new business area for Hydro under Extruded Solutions. The transaction is expected to close in second half of 2017. Hydro would gain global leadership through...
Angul Aluminium Park, a joint venture between Navratna firm National Aluminium Company (Nalco) and state-owned Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) would get molten aluminium directly from the Nalco’s Angul smelter. The first of its kind aluminium park would create opportunity for downstream sector where molten aluminium would be directly fed into the downstream plants located out there. This will eliminate the need to re-melt primary products before putting it into downstream applications. The aluminium park is situated near the Nalco smelter facility and in close proximity to all the ports and markets. The project involves an investment of INR 180 crore. The state-of-the-art project is fully equipped with logistics infrastructure facility, an exclusive...
The Curtain Wall Coalition (CWC) is an organization that represents the U.S. curtain wall fabricators and installers. As downstream consumers of aluminium, especially aluminium extrusions, they have expressed their stand against any tariff on the import of primary aluminium. They argued that import duty on primary aluminium exported to the U.S. will make the domestic industry less competitive in the global market, especially, against low-cost countries like China. They have said that curtain wall industry generates jobs for thousands of union as well as non-union employees across the U.S. Heavily subsidized curtain wall suppliers from China and other countries will be advantageous over the domestic players if they make their products costlier. Any tariff on primary aluminium will be...
The Viet Nam Competition Authority (VCA) made an announcement on Tuesday, 4th July, that the Australia Anti-Dumping Commission (ADC) completed an investigation on alleged dumping of aluminium extrusions. ADC will not impose countervailing duty on aluminium extrusions imported from Viet Nam. Australia Anti-Dumping Commission (ADC) under Australia's Department of Industry, Innovation and Science has concluded an investigation on alleged dumping of aluminium extrusions imported from VietNam and Malaysia. The dumping margin for Vietnamese cooperative exporters ranges from 7.7 per cent to 18 per cent and margins for non-cooperative entities at 34.9 per cent. In August 2016, ADC started an investigation into dumping and countervailing duty on aluminium extrusions imported from VietNam and...
The eleventh edition of Metef just ended in Verona; a great interest among the exibitors and visitors was clearly visible, business linked to the aluminium and foundry worlds was brisk and the dominant theme recorded was that of a more international character. There was a 25% increase in the number of foreign participators and visitors in comparison with previous editions. A key role was played by commercial delegations coming from countries with solid industrial traditions, such as, the United States, Germany, Austria, Russia, and by markets where technical and production capacity is developing fast, such as India, Iran, Iraq, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, Mexico. The presence of great primary metal producer should be underlined: Europe with...
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According to data provided by Sublime China Information (SCI) and published by Shanghai Metals Market, the usage of aluminium by the automotive sector in China was on a downtrend in April. The consumption of automotive aluminium for the month of April was lower than SCI’s projection. The automobile industry consumed 273,000 tonnes of aluminium in April, according to the SCI data. The consumption dropped by 17.9 per cent from March and down 1.4 per cent from a year before. The total automotive aluminium consumption stood at 1.18 million tonnes from January through April, increased 6 per cent from a year before.
The aluminium flat rolled products trade of the United States of America is shrinking, estimates derived from the global statistics reveal. While aluminium plates, sheets and strips export is slated to reduce to almost half its volume in 2017 from last year, value-wise decrease is also quite evident. The country exported 886142 tonnes of aluminium plates, sheets and strips in 2016 globally. In 2017, this volume is estimated to come down to 443667 tonnes, down 49.9 per cent year-on-year. Value-wise export drop is also in the forecast. The USA exported aluminium plates, sheets and strips worth US$3.4 million in 2016, which is estimated to total at US$2.1 million in 2017. The YoY drop by 38 per cent can be attributed to a number of macroeconomic factors, fluctuating US dollar value being...
