AL Circle Analysis: Bauxite developments, alumina trade & primary aluminium market dynamics across Australia, Guinea, US & India
The aluminium industry is entering another phase of supply-chain repositioning. Across bauxite, alumina and primary aluminium, companies are investing in new resources, consolidating strategic assets and expanding processing capacity, while governments are increasingly treating domestic supply as a strategic priority. The latest developments from Australia, Guyana, Guinea, Indonesia, the US and India point to a market where resource security, processing location and control over supply chains are becoming as important as production growth. At the same time, new trading mechanisms and changing investment patterns are beginning to influence how aluminium and its raw materials reach the market. Bauxite supply expands, but securing the right tonnes is becoming harder In Western Australia, VBX...
China's 22.87 Mt extrusion market faces a structural shift as 317 GW solar growth counters weak construction demand
The global aluminium extrusion landscape is undergoing a structural transition driven by industrial decarbonisation, global electrification, and the rapid deployment of clean energy infrastructure. Historically anchored by civil engineering and residential real estate, demand for extruded aluminium profiles in China, the world’s dominant manufacturing hub, is decoupling from traditional property sectors. Persistent structural weakness in China’s domestic construction market has slowed the consumption of conventional architectural profiles such as window frames, door sections, and curtain walls. Conversely, advanced industrial applications, specifically solar photovoltaic (PV) racking, battery energy storage systems (BESS), power grid modernisation, and electric vehicles (EVs), have...
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Chinese consortium's initiative to source Guinea bauxite will sideline India
The US$ 200 million worth bauxite mining project that Singapore-based Winning International Group has planned to start in the Boke region of western Guinea of Africa, through its formed consortium will sideline traditional suppliers like India, Australia, and Indonesia. Winning plans to export 30 million tonnes a year of bauxite ore from the new mine in Guinea to China. This comes in the wake of a spate of recent developments in the bauxite market which saw Australia imposing restrictions on bauxite mining for environmental reasons, Indonesia virtually banning export, and the Indian bauxite getting lower in quality. Till now, Winning had been transporting between three to four million tonnes of bauxite ore a year from India's western shores to China. Bosco Lau Chi Wah, chief executive...
"We’re focused … to ensure a level playing field where all global aluminum producers can compete in a fair and open market." Heidi Brock, President & CEO, The Aluminum Association, USA
The Aluminum Association is the leading voice for aluminum industry in Washington, DC that promotes the production and use of aluminum as the sustainable material of choice. The Association provides global standards, industry statistics and expert knowledge to its members and policy makers. Recently, The Aluminum Association published its response on the Joint Presidential Statement by the United States and China which lays out concrete and achievable goals for addressing climate change, and in a time frame that emphasizes the immediacy of these challenges. Heidi Biggs Brock, President & CEO The Aluminum Association shared with AlCircle the Association's perspective on the current aluminium market challenge, US-China trade policy and the US demand situation. Excerpts from the interview:...
Ornamental Fence Depot offers best aluminum fences
Ornamental Fence Depot is the service provider in the area of aluminum fence structures. The products offered by Ornamental Fence Depot have managed to gain the market competitive position because of the authentic design and high quality. Ornamental Fence Depot is one of the main fence product development and installation company in Northeastern Ohio. Aluminum fences are one of the main attractions and security measures in commercial and residential buildings structures. The company has managed to serve all the customers irrespective of the building structure and have been able to serve their needs using the high quality aluminum fence. The company provides high quality reasonable priced products. The products of the company include the wrought iron fences for residential grade yards and...
New lightweight aluminum-steel alloy rivals titanium in strength
Old-fashioned steel has been one of the most reliable and ubiquitous building materials for centuries, so it might seem a bit outmoded to talk of a steel breakthrough. But researchers at Pohang University of Science and Technology in South Korea may have made steel cool again, not to mention stronger and lighter, reports Popular Mechanics. The researchers have devised a method for creating an aluminum-steel alloy that is more flexible, lightweight and stronger than any kind of steel ever made. This isn't the first time anyone has thought to add aluminum to the steel mix. Back in the 1970s, Soviet scientists recognized that by blending steel and aluminum, they could forge an ultra-strong, lightweight metal, but these advantages were always superseded by one major drawback: it was...
LME aluminium to retest resistance at $1,573
LME aluminium is expected to retest a resistance at $1,573 per tonne, with a good chance of breaking above this level and rising more towards a range of $1,580-$1,588. The resistance is provided by the 38.2 percent Fibonacci projection level of an upward wave c, the third wave of a three-wave cycle from the Aug. 24 low of $1,506. It temporarily blocks the way towards the range formed by the 61.8 percent and the 76.4 percent levels. However, this wave is capable of travelling to $1,602, the 100 percent level. The resistance thus looks vulnerable. Only a break below $1,553, the 14.6 percent level, could confirm a resumption of the downtrend from the Sept. 9 high of $1,655.50.
Nordic Mining's patent application for new alumina technology approved
The joint patent application by Nordic Mining and Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) for a new technology for extraction of alumina from aluminium/calcium-rich minerals has been approved by the Norwegian Industrial Property Office. CEO of Nordic Mining, Ivar S. Fossum comments: "The patent is an important achievement for this technology, which may give exciting industrial opportunities."
Orbite receives Notice of Allowance for US fly ash monetization patent
Orbite Technologies Inc. today announced that it has been advised by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) that its patent application titled "Processes for Treating Fly Ash" has been found allowable. Consequently, the Company has processed payment of the requisite fees and anticipates patent issuance within USPTO's usual timeframe of four to eight weeks. The patent covers the selective extraction and recovery of valuable elements such as scandium, gallium, rare earths and rare metals, alumina, magnesium oxide and titanium dioxide from fly ash, a residue from coal combustion, using Orbite's chloride-based technology. According to the American Coal Ash Association, over 77 million tons of coal ash were produced in the United States in 2013 alone, creating a significant...
Singapore’s Winning International invests US$200 million in bauxite mining in Africa
Singapore-based Winning International Group (Winning) has invested USD 200 million in a bauxite mining project in the Boke region of western Guinea of Africa, through its formed consortium. The company along with its consortium partners- Weiqiao Pioneering Group, headquartered in China’s Shandong province, UMS and China’s Yantai Port Group, plans to scale up production of bauxite ore at its Guinea plant from the present 5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to 10 mtpa, and eventually to 30 mtpa in a two year time under three phases. With this, Winning aims at becoming the single largest bauxite producer of the world. As of now, the current production capacity of the world’s single largest bauxite mining company stands at 20 mtpa. Guinea in Africa has the world’s richest bauxite reserves....
World's first optical ‘rectenna' uses aluminium coated carbon nanotubes
Scientists in the US have assembled the first ever optical rectenna - a device that’s part antenna, part rectifier diode (containing calcium and aluminium), and uses the functions of both to convert light into a direct electrical current. The device uses an array of aluminium oxide coated carbon nanotubes that function like tiny antennas to capture light, and from this it generates an oscillating charge that travels through the rectifier, which then switches on and converts the alternating current (AC) into a direct current (DC). It’s taken scientists more than 40 years to get light working in this way, and the invention could lead to new technologies for converting heat waste into electricity and more efficiently capturing solar energy - without the need for cooling. "A rectenna is...
LME aluminium down 20% on year
LME Aluminium prices averaged at $ 1588.8 per tonne by the end of September 2015, down 20% from month ending September 2014. International Aluminium Institute (IAI) that measures the production trend in the world has come out with its latest numbers. IAI has mentioned that the trend of Aluminium production again moved to higher side. In August 2015, World Aluminium markets moved to record production numbers. Data estimates from International Aluminium Institute (IAI) showed that the total primary Aluminium production reached 4.95 million tonnes in September 2015 against 4.92 million tonnes in July 2015. This marks an increase of 0.60% on a monthly basis. The production of Aluminium in August 2014 was 4.48 million. This means that Aluminium production increased by 10.5% on a yearly basis....
Crown Packaging reevaluates its craft business
After aggressively adding more than 350 craft beer clients in 18 months, Crown Beverage Packaging - a leading supplier of aluminum cans for beverage manufacturers - is now struggling to keep up with demand from the very customers it sought, and is considering altering the ways it services craft customers. Over the last week, Crown began informing a number of craft breweries that it would no longer be able to fill orders of printed aluminum cans. “We were told that they wouldn’t be able to reprint our cans at any time and that we needed to find a new supplier or a new package variety,” said Heather Sanborn, the co-founder of Portland, Maine’s Rising Tide Brewing Company. Rising Tide isn’t alone. At least three other brewers shared similar stories on an online forum hosted on the Brewers...
Brazilian regulators raise competition concerns over Ball-Rexam deal
Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Economico or CADE concluded the first stage of its investigation and the General Superintendent issued an opinion that expresses competition concerns regarding unconditional clearance of Ball Corp.'s proposed acquisition of Rexam Plc. While Ball respectfully disagrees that the proposed transaction would harm competition in Brazil, the company said it is looking forward to working with CADE's Commissioners to find a solution that would address any concerns that CADE's Tribunal may have. It is expected that all necessary regulatory clearances will be obtained to enable the proposed acquisition to close during the first half of 2016. Following closing of the transaction, Ball will remain a New York Stock Exchange listed company domiciled in the U.S. In...
Aluminium Pressure Die Casting Competition 2016 submission deadline extended
The deadline for submission of aluminium cast pieces for the Aluminium Pressure Die Casting Competition 2016 has been extended to 1 November 2015. For years the competition has been a proven platform for showing off the high standard of quality in aluminium pressure die casting. The goal of the competition is to bolster interest in aluminium as a versatile working material, and to identify new areas of application. The cast pieces submitted to the Aluminium Pressure Die Casting Competition 2016 will be evaluated according to the suitability of the construction for pressure die casting and the construction's efficient use of resources. Foundries are free to submit any number of die cast pieces. The submissions will be evaluated by an expert jury the beginning of December 2015 following...
Roy Harvey assumes leadership of Alcoa’s Global Primary Products group
Lightweight and high performance metals leader Alcoa announced that Roy Harvey, Executive Vice President, Human Resources and Environment, Health, Safety and Sustainability, is appointed President of Global Primary Products (GPP), succeeding Bob Wilt, effective immediately. Harvey previously served as both Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of GPP, Alcoa’s upstream business. The Company recently announced plans to separate the upstream and value-add businesses into independent publicly-traded companies. “Roy Harvey is an excellent leader to continue the transformation of our Global Primary Products Group into one of the industry’s strongest global competitors,” said Klaus Kleinfeld, Alcoa Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “He has a strong track record of success...
Indonesia's Antam in talks with CDB for an alumina refinery project loan
Aneka Tambang (Antam), the leading state-owned diversified mining company of Indonesia, is in talks with China Development Bank for a loan of $1.5 billion for an alumina refinery project that is currently being undertaken in the state. SOE Minister Rini Soemarno told on Tuesday, October 6, "We are in talks with CDB for the development of a refinery with Antam." The project will add significantly to the company’s operations creating huge employment opportunities in the Jakarta region.
Iran Aluminium Co sanctions listing annulled
The inclusion of Iranian Aluminium Co (“Iralco”) by the Council of the EU in the EU’s nuclear proliferation sanctions on Iran has been annulled by the CJEU in Case T-158/13 Iranian Aluminium Co v Council. The judgment was given on 15 September 2015. Iralco had been subject to sanctions since 2012 for allegedly assisting other designated entities to violate the provisions of the UN and EU’s Iran sanctions, supporting Iran’s proliferation-sensitive nuclear activities, and contracting to supply aluminium to Iran Centrifuge Technology Company, an entity subject to EU sanctions. Iralco denied the Council’s reasons for listing, and the Council produced no supporting evidence in response. The listing was therefore annulled on the basis that the Council had made an error in its listing...
LME aluminium to test resistance at $1,581
LME aluminium is expected to test a resistance at $1,581 per tonne, with a good chance of breaking above this level and rising more towards the next resistance at $1,598. These two resistances are identified respectively as the 50 percent and the 38.2 percent Fibonacci retracements on the rise from the August 24 low of $1,506 to the September 9 high of $1,655.50. Wave pattern suggests that aluminium is riding on a wave c, the third wave of a three-wave cycle from $1,506. This wave could at least travel to $1,634, its 61.8 percent Fibonacci projection level. A more realistic target could be $1,598.
Important milestone reached in ¡VAMOS! mining project
¡VAMOS!, the Viable Alternative Mining Operating System, a project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, has reached a major milestone with the successful delivery of conceptual design plans of the prototype and all associated equipment. The work was carried out in Work Package 2 (WP2), which also designed the system’s architecture and its functional specifications. WP2 is now successfully completed and the ¡VAMOS! Consortium is looking forward to the challenges ahead. At a Technical Project Meeting held in Nijkerk, The Netherlands, 7-8 September, the project status was evaluated. Frank Bosman, Manager Research Development & Innovation at Damen Dredging Equipment, based in Nijkerk, says that the conclusion of WP2 demonstrated that the partnership...
