Norway will provide a guarantee of up to NOK 150 million (USD 16.08 million) to support revenue security for the planned 255 MW Thakadu solar project in South Africa, helping reduce the risk faced by investors in the renewable energy development. The guarantee will be provided to Lyra Energy, an electricity sales platform jointly owned by Scatec, Standard Bank and Stanlib. It will cover the risk of companies buying electricity from the solar plant failing to make their payments. The agreement, announced on September 14, 2026, is the first involving a private company under Norway's renewable energy guarantee mechanism. The NOK 5 billion (USD 536 million) programme is designed to encourage greater private investment in renewable energy projects in developing countries by taking on part of...
The latest escalation in the US-Canada trade dispute is putting pressure on one of North America's most deeply integrated manufacturing networks, with auto-parts makers facing higher costs and growing uncertainty over where and how components should be produced. The two countries have spent decades building an automotive supply chain in which parts and materials routinely cross the border multiple times before reaching a finished vehicle. The latest tariff measures, including duties on aluminium and steel, threaten to disrupt that model and could force suppliers to reconsider long-established production routes. The immediate challenge for automakers and their suppliers is deciding whether to absorb higher costs in the short term or make expensive changes to their supply chains. For...
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Bulgari, the famous Italian luxury fashion house, is the latest marque to collaborate with the Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama for their Aluminium Sorayama Special Edition watch. This limited edition watch flaunts a gorgeously streamlined, mechanically inspired new style to the brand's sporty neo-retro series. Hajime Sorayama, a Japanese illustrator among the most significant artists of the 1980s, is most known for his realistic, too feminine representations of robots depicted in a dazzling chrome, streamlined modern-inspired manner. The iconic hybrid semi-integrated aluminium bracelet/rubber strap from the aluminium collection is paired with Sorayama special edition watch. The 40mm casing is built of aluminium and rubber, and the crown is constructed of strengthened black titanium. The...
Sonali Paper and Board Mill Ltd, a paper manufacturer from Bangladesh, is about to set its first foot in the aluminium sector by beginning commercial production of its latest product line of aluminium foil papers on August 29, 2022. The next day itself, during filing its details at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), Sonali Paper and Board Mill Ltd claimed that the aluminium foil plant’s production capacity is estimated to be 2.8 crore pieces each year, which would yield an annual revenue of Tk19.6 crore. As early as May 2021, Sonali Paper had inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chinese enterprise Zhangjiagang Fineness Aluminium Foil Company to construct an aluminium foil paper factory in Rupganj, a sub-district of Narayanganj, a district in Bangladesh. The secretary of Sonali...
Wildpack Beverages, a Canadian beverage manufacturing and packaging enterprise has released their unaudited Q2 2022 Financial Reports, ending June 30, indicating revenue growth of 10 per cent to US$8.91 million compared with the Q2 2021 earnings of $8.14 million. Wildpack's Board of Directors has appointed KPMG LLP as their independent auditor, effective August 29, 2022. Based in the Netherlands, KPMG LLP is a transnational network of professional firms providing tax, audit and advisory services. It is one of the Big Four accounting organizations globally. Wildpack provides sustainable aluminium can filling, packaging, brokering, decorating and sleeve or label printing services to brands all around the United States, along with looking after the logistics of its products. The company's...
The Savannah Pilots Association of Georgia received a brand-new aluminium pilot boat from Snow and Company, a Washington-based boat-builder. The single-chine, flush-deck Savannah was created by the UK-based naval design firm Camarc. Its dimensions are 64 feet (19.5 metres) in length, 19.5 feet (5.9 metres) in beam, 3.63 feet (1.1 metres) in full load draught, 51 tonnes (46.2 tonnes), with seats for two crew and seven pilots. Aluminium boats have excellent corrosion resistance, making them suited for fresh and saltwater conditions. Aluminium is the best material for shipbuilding. It is also favoured for marine applications like military patrol boats and fast ferries. The boat can travel up to 35 knots thanks to two MTU 12V2000M86 engines that power Hamilton HTX52 waterjets through ZF 3055...
After the release of the Streetfighter V4 and Streetfighter V4 S, Ducati has unveiled its latest creation, the Ducati Streetfighter V2, powered by a 955 cc twin-cylinder engine. This new edition offers a monocoque aluminium chassis connected with 43 mm fully adjustable forks in the front and a fully controllable mono-shock at the rear segment of the bike. Italian sports bike maker Ducati has introduced fair competition in the Indian market with its lowest-priced Streetfighter range. The Streetfighter V2 is directly comparable with other performance bikes with a similar price quotient available in India, like Triumph Street Triple, Kawasaki Z900, and BMW F 900 R. Ducati India will supply the latest model in their flagship red colour. The Streetfighter V2 is the third model of Ducati’s...
Ardagh Group has selected AFRY as their engineering and consultation partner to run operations at the latest Ardagh Metal Packaging factory and the Ardagh Glass Packaging factory in Brazil. Ardagh Group is an international supplier of sustainable and recyclable aluminium and glass packaging solutions for brand owners worldwide. AFRY is a European engineering, designing and advisory service provider that aids any big organisation in successfully carrying out everyday operations. The partnership will assist Ardagh a lot as it will be able to use the expertise of AFRY in managing the new multi-faced beverage can manufacturing unit, along with overseeing functions at the glass factory. AFRY, the Swedish-Finnish company, will contribute to environmental research by ensuring the acquisition of...
EK Quantum has launched its latest Lumen 7-inch LCD forged from a single piece of aluminium which can be customised with nickel, black or silver coatings. Like other EK Quantum products, this individual item also displays an amazing design and is compatible with any liquid cooling configuration. The display can be identified as an additional desktop by a user's operating system, and it connects with the PC via an HDMI 2.0 cable which comes accompanied with the package. The input portal has an internal Type-A USB 2.0 specification. An excess USB Type-C cable has also been provided to use Lumen as an external display. EK Quantum Lumen 7-inch LCD is a high-quality IPS screen specially made for installation inside the PC case or for being utilised as an external monitor for hardware load,...
The end user aluminium sector had ample good news this week with MIT and Peking University scientists researching an aluminium-sulfur battery with molten-salt electrolyte that could prove to be more efficient and cost-effective than the traditional lithium-ion battery in an electric vehicle. On August 23, Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla declared in the 63rd Annual General Meeting of Hindalco Industries that the company has constituted India’s first all-aluminium railway wagon. Ball Corporation, in collaboration with Re:Water, is ready to launch its aluminium cups in the UK alongside signing a long-term supply and purchase deal with Wildpack Beverage, a Canadian brewery plus packaging company. A global team of researchers managed by Quanguan Pang at the Peking University and Donald Sadoway at MIT...
The USA has been under severe aluminium can shortage since the spring of 2020, and this recurring problem has resulted in the closure of many bars and outlets serving alcoholic beverages. Breweries were also largely affected by inflated operational costs. Right Brain Brewery, located in Traverse City, Michigan, was also not spared from the consequences, as internal reports claimed the prices were up by two cents per can. The owner, Russell Springsteen, casually remarked that they had to outsource the supply from Asia at times to meet the community's demand because regional availability was becoming extremely scarce. Russell Springsteen of Right Brain Brewery denoted: “Because we’re a smaller supplier, we were actually choked out of can supply when 2020 came around, and we lost a lot of...
Mercedes-Benz Group AG, a German multinational automotive corporation, has received Performance Standard V2 (2017) Certification from the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative for aluminium vehicle body and structural parts production at its five European press shops. The automobile company has bagged the certification for its unwavering focus on material stewardship for press shop operations in Kuppenheim, Sindelfingen, Bremen, Hamburg in Germany and Kecskemét in Hungary. The ASI Performance Standard certification recognises material stewardship issues such as product design, life cycle assessments, management of process scrap and collection and recycling of products at end-of-life. Alexander Knittel, Strategy and Planning BodyTEC at Mercedes-Benz AG, said: “Responsible Sustainability' is a...
Rolec’s aluDOOR is a continuation of their popular enclosure series aluCASE and is more evolved with a perfectly sustainable aluminium case that can be attached to bulkheads, workstations, machines and walls. This portable aluminium enclosure comes with the usual IP66 and IP67 ratings, which can be customised with a 69k upgrade as per the customer’s request. The aluDOOR can be utilised for factory automation, sensory detection, also proving its application in railway systems, ship technology, flow meters, robotic and machine control. The lid of the enclosure has been forged along with a homogenised hinge pin that can be inserted into holders to secure the case with two tamperproof Torx T25 (M5) screws. Once covered, the lid is then bolted with two additional T25 screws. The entire lid and...
Svitch, one of India's largest manufacturers of e-bikes, is known for its sleek and smart look, making the bike stand out among the crowd. The Svitch XE+ is the latest addition to their collection. The XE+ model features a forged aluminium alloy 6061 chassis, making it lightweight and robust simultaneously. One of the most widely used and adaptable aluminium alloys on the market is forged aluminium alloy 6061, often known as "alloy61S." This grade is one of the most versatile alloys that have undergone heat treatment. Its tenacity and exceptional corrosion resistance are commonly used for flooring, ramps, and steps. “A normal bicycle runs on the streets at 15 to 20 km/hr. Electric bicycles can run between 20 and 40 km/hr. You’ll eventually feel that thrill,” said Raj Patel, founder of the...
Fenesta, a company under DCM Shriram Group’s network, also India’s biggest windows and doors maker, has declared, in a segment today, the optimisation of its latest factory in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. This will account for the company’s sixth manufacturing unit in India, while the other five are already situated in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kota and two in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan. With the addition of this sixth unit, Fenesta will churn out even more uPVC-aluminium doors and windows, eventually strengthening the supply chain in the construction sector. Fenesta controls the entire business model surrounding its products, which ensures smooth production of the uPVC joints and aluminium extrusions that construct the patented profiles. The company also oversees the installation along with providing...
A global team of researchers managed by Quanguan Pang at the Peking University and Donald Sadoway at MIT have released records of a bidirectional, quick-charging aluminium-chalcogen battery activated by a molten-salt electrolyte consisting NaCl-KCl-AlCl 3 . This is a variation from the conventional aluminium batteries that have low capacity compound formulations than the positive elemental-chalogen electrode. Moreover, the molten-salt electrolytes are safer than room-temperature ionic liquids that are prone to high polarization. The infinite stages of conversions between aluminium and chalogen permit quick charging facilities till 200C and the battery can go through various cycles at extremely high charging rates without forming aluminium dendrite. A research paper defining the steps has...
Jake Inglis, the winner of the Alupro-sponsored category for "personal daily care product and brand" at the 2022 Student Starpack Awards, was given a VIP tour of Crown's cutting-edge R&D centre in Wantage on Thursday, August 18. Jake was joined by judges and given a chance to interact with Crown's creative design innovation team, providing a rare opportunity to go behind the scenes at one of the UK's top package design centres. Jake received £500 in addition to the trip to further his education at Nottingham Trent University. “We were hugely impressed by each of the entries submitted this year, but the ernære prototype really stood out. Jake’s unique design was incredibly well thought out and demonstrated the potential aluminium offers for space-saving, multi-use, practical circular...
Lucas Szymanowski, the co-founder of S27 Alehouse & Brewery in San Jose, California, has talked about the unavailability of aluminium cans to package craft beer. In his words, "Cans have been the biggest problem for us.” Brewers across the United States are facing aluminium can shortage, which started in the spring of 2020 when the COVID-19 was in full swing leading to the closure of many bars and restaurants. Thus, more and more people were drinking at home, which drove up the demand for aluminium cans. Other beverage products were also seeking cans for packaging, but there were not enough to go around, says Bart Watson, chief economist at the Brewers Association. Since supply chains were affected by the COVID-19, there were delivery delays. But the need for cans was unwavering....
The infinitely recyclable Ball Aluminum Cup is set to hit the UK market this autumn after making a triumphant debut at three Super Bowls and Coldplay's Music of the Spheres US Tours. Ball has teamed up with Re:Water as the exclusive distributor of the cup. This collaboration marks the UK's first widespread distribution of aluminium cups. A classic replacement for single-use plastic and paper cups, these aluminium cups are intended to serve beverages at various locations, including sporting arenas, music festivals, bars, and other public gathering places. The aluminum cups have also received Bronze level Cradle to Cradle certification for their performance in using renewable energy and carbon control. The Ball Aluminum Cup® is a cutting-edge and upscale alternative to single-use containers...
On Tuesday, August 23, Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla announced in the 63rd Annual General Meeting of Hindalco Industries that the company developed India’s first all-aluminium railway wagon. The railway rake made from lightweight, high strength aluminium alloys is 180-190 tonnes lighter than a steel rake. According to Mr Mangalam, the railway rake made of aluminium will be a game changer, saving 1,500 tonnes of carbon emissions a year. It will also improve the logistics efficiency of coal transportation and accelerate India’s decarbonisation journey, said Birla. He calculates that if five per cent of the 2 lakh railway wagons that India government plans to introduce are of aluminium, around 15 million tonnes of carbon emissions can be saved in a year. Hindalco’s environmental, social and...
