Germany exports 86% of TRIMET’s aluminium production despite 1.84Mt domestic demand from automotive, packaging & extrusion industries
Germany’s last remaining primary aluminium producer, TRIMET Aluminium SE, has a combined nameplate capacity of approximately 540,000 tonnes per year across its German and French smelters. Yet Germany exported 466,756 tonnes of unwrought primary aluminium in 2025, equivalent to 86.44 per cent of that combined capacity. Exports reached 501,678 tonnes in 2023 and 449,590 tonnes in 2024, while shipments totalled 273,080 tonnes between January and July 2026. The comparison presents an intriguing picture of Germany’s aluminium industry. Despite having a limited primary smelting base, the country continues to export hundreds of thousands of tonnes of unwrought aluminium annually. At the same time, it imported 2 million tonnes of primary aluminium in 2025, more than four times its exports. Why...
Indonesian Aluminium: The shift from mining to smelting
Indonesia is pitched as the next big Asian aluminium hub as the country has released an expansive alumina and aluminium expansion plan, based on the abundant bauxite resource in the country. China has exhausted its aluminium capacity cap and is unlikely to raise installed capacity significantly in the coming years. Additionally, geopolitical conflicts, sanctions, and tariffs have made much of global aluminium capacity inaccessible and vulnerable. This includes Russian aluminium and the Gulf output, along with restricted and costly access to Canadian aluminium for the US smelters. The already tight supply conditions have been made worse after the Iran-Israel-US war that disrupted the Gulf aluminium capacity. Under current supply conditions, India and Indonesia will play a critical role in...
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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...
Copper and aluminium battle it out for Chinese grid tenders
China’s copper and aluminium industries are battling it out to secure lucrative tenders to wire up the country’s growing cities amid waning demand for the metals. The rout in commodities has seen copper and aluminium prices drop by about 20 per cent since the beginning of the year on the back of China’s slowdown. Both aluminium and copper are saddled with overcapacity, making any pockets of demand all the more sought after. Hence the interest in this summer’s publication of national standards for aluminium alloy to be used in cables in local electricity distribution grids. China targets investment of RMB300bn in city power distribution this year alone, and RMB2tn by 2020 to keep pace with rapid urbanisation. Switching to aluminium alloy for factories and city distribution networks could...
Tabular alumina producer Aluchem to receive Business of the Year Award
Aluchem has been one of the steady employers of the Jackson area in the state of Mississippi for 20 years, making a once abandoned basic brick plant an important source of employment and tabular alumina production. As an acknowledgement of this entrepreneurial activity, Aluchem, located on Beaver Pike just west of Jackson, has been named as the 2015 Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year. The company will be one of many to be honoured during the chamber’s Annual Appreciation Banquet on Thursday, October 22. “It is an honour and privilege to receive such an award and it is with great pride to accept the award of 2015 Business/Industry of the Year!” said an Aluchem spokesperson. Aluchem was founded in 1978 by Ronald Zapletal, Ronal Bell and Edward Butera. In 1987, these...
Ningbo Mayyard develops mirrored aluminum LED light engine
Ningbo Mayyard Photoelectricity Co., Ltd has combined an LED light source and driver together in a new LED light engine to address the changing LED lighting market with multiple lamp and luminaire configurations on the market. The new engine is designed to be competitive in the market, better meeting customer demands with high heat dissipation, high efficiency, convenient operation and a mirrored aluminum configuration. Mirrored aluminum has high reflectivity. Electronic components of the LED light engine are thermally separated. The light-emitting chip is directly fixed onto the mirrored surface of the aluminum reflectors, through gold wire connection on the electrode. BT is used as the insulating dielectric layer. This results in the most suitable COB package, with good heat...
