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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Alumina price is at its lowest level in China since 2009
Can the alumina price recover in the next six months? This is the question Credit Suisse asks. If China's aluminium smelters ramp up as planned then the shortfall in alumina should peak in the December quarter and push up the price, attracting imports. On the other hand, the broker suspects aluminium smelters need to curtail output by 2.4mtpa this year, bringing forward the peak to the current quarter when prices are falling. If smelter reductions are forthcoming the broker finds little reason for alumina to recover. The alumina price is at its lowest level since 2009. The fall reflects imbalances in the speed of the ramp-up in aluminium smelters and alumina refineries. In the first half of this year China faced a glut in alumina which drove down prices. Alumina refineries have ramped up...
Hindalco Industries Ltd clarifies on INR 7500 crore invesments
The Exchange had sought clarification from Hindalco Industries Ltd with respect to news article appearing in Financial Express on August 15, 2015 titled "Birla invests INR 7,500 cr in Odisha refinery". Hindalco Industries Ltd has replied stating that Utkal Alumina International Ltd (Utkal) is our 100% owned subsidiary. Utkal has made a total investment of over INR 7500 Crores in its Alumina plant in district Rayagada, Odisha which has an inherent capacity to produce 1.5 mt per annum of Alumina. Shares of HINDALCO INDUSTRIES LTD. was last trading in BSE at INR 90.85 as compared to the previous close of INR 93.3. The total number of shares traded during the day was 874687 in over 8004 trades. The stock hit an intraday high of INR 95 and intraday low of 89.75. The net turnover during the day...
Orient Abrasives rises on getting nod for enhancement of Bauxite Mineral production capacity
Orient Abrasives (OAL), the largest producer of calcined and fused products in India, has received clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, for enhancement of bauxite production capacity at their Kothariya bauxite mine and the Nandana I bauxite mine at Kalyanpur, Jamnagar, as well as the Avariyar II bauxite mine at Mevasa, Jamnagar. The development saw share price of the company rising significantly. OAL is currently trading at INR 27.40, up by 0.10 points or 0.37% from its previous closing of INR 27.30 on the BSE. The scrip opened at INR 27.50 and has touched a high and low of INR 27.50 and INR 27.40 respectively. So far 8250 shares were traded on the counter. The BSE group 'B ' stock of face value Rs. 1 has touched a 52 week high of INR 28.75 on...
Century Aluminum looks to control costs as aluminum prices crash
Century Aluminum has announced several cost reduction initiatives during its 2Q15 earnings call. Several mining companies, including Freeport-McMoRan, have announced such initiatives. As commodity prices from aluminum to copper are testing their multi-year lows, cutting down on every possible cost has become imperative for companies operating in this space. The company is expecting annualized cost savings between $15 million and $20 million from a headcount reduction. A similar amount is expected from a reduction in operating expenses. Century Aluminum is also expecting annualized savings of $5 million to $10 million each from lower raw material costs and closure of the Ravenswood plant. According to Century Aluminum, it has negotiated some price concessions with its power suppliers. As...
Vedanta to raise INR 2,000 crore to refinance debt
Vedanta Ltd, the mining and oil and gas arm of Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Resources Plc., plans to raise INR 2,000 crore by issuing non-convertible debentures (NCDs) in a bid to refinance a part of the company’s debt, the company informed the stock exchanges on Monday. This issue is part of the overall approval to raise INR 8,000 crore given by its board and its shareholders during the company annual shareholders’ meet held on 11 July 2015. “Vedanta Ltd is subject to favourable market conditions in the process of issuing Secured, Rated, Non-Cumulative, Redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) of INR 10,00,000/- (Rupees Ten Lakhs Only) each up to INR 2000,00,00,000/- (Rupees Two Thousand Crores Only) on Private Placement basis,” the company said in its statement. The NCDs will be listed on...
ESS DEE Aluminium reports net profit of INR 7.04 crore for June quarter
ESS DEE Aluminium has reported a consolidated total income from operations of INR 184.61 crore and a net profit of INR 7.04 crore for the quarter ended Jun '15. For the quarter ended Jun 2014 the consolidated total income from operations was INR 181.55 crore and net profit was INR 5.55 crore. ESS DEE shares closed at 349.45 on August 14, 2015 (NSE) and has given 52.07% returns over the last 6 months and -28.76% over the last 12 months.
South Korea aluminium rolled products sales increase in January-July 2015
South Korea's aluminum rolled products sales increased in January-July, an increase of 0.8% year on year. Meanwhile, the country's aluminum cold rolled export sales increased by 20% year on year, despite domestic sales fell further. Novelis, the largest manufacturer in South Korea, said the company's aluminum annual production capacity is expected to reach 1 million tons. In addition, sales of the others aluminum suppliers including Asahi Aluminum, Daeho Alcoa also fell during the first six months.
Vedanta-owned Balco shuts rolling mill at Korba over slump in metal prices
Vedanta-owned Bharat Aluminium Co, one of India's top private sector aluminium producers, has shut its rolling mill at Korba in Chhattisgarh due to a slump in metal prices and competition from cheap imports from China. Vedanta's alumina refinery at Lanjigarh in Odisha, which has been struggling to source its main raw material, bauxite since inception, could be next in line to meet a similar fate, top sources with knowledge of the situation at the company. For both these facilities reeling under shrinking margins, the devaluation of the Chinese currency last week has come as the last straw as it threatens to increase imports. "We have been forced to take this tough decision (on closing the rolling mill) last week as the situation is economically untenable. In the backdrop of a crash in...
Aluminium producer Alro recovers 2014 loss and turns profit in 2015
Romanian aluminium producer Alro S.A. posted an adjusted net profit of RON 113 million (EUR 25.58 million) as a result of cost cutting and increase of income during the first half of 2015, shows a company financial report. In H1 2014 the company had registered an adjusted net loss of RON 80 million (EUR 18.11 million). Alro also increased its turnover to RON 1.2 billion (EUR 270 million), against the H1 2014 value of RON 966 million (EUR 218.65 million). EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and impairment) saw a positive upturn to RON 214 million, compared to RON 3.04 million, in H1 2014. Its production saw rises for the first half of the year both in primary aluminium production (134,760 tonnes against 127,605 tonnes in H1 2014) and processed aluminium...
Project Titan cost-improvement programme on track
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), one of the world’s leading aluminium smelters, is on schedule with its cost-improvement programme - Project Titan. Project Titan, launched in February 2014, is a 2-year programme that aims at reducing Alba’s cash cost by $150/mt. At the end of June 2015, the programme has unlocked $129/mt of savings and Alba is on track to achieve the set target of $150/mt by January 2016. Directed by Alba’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Murray, Project Titan was launched to ensure that Alba maintains its position as one of the leading, low cost producers in the aluminium industry. Commenting on the Project, Mr. Murray said: “Project Titan is not just a cost-cutting programme; it is also a training programme where we leverage the use of our operational excellence expertise...
Federal-Mogul Powertrain develops new high-strength aluminium alloy for diesel pistons
Federal-Mogul Powertrain, a division of Federal-Mogul, has developed a new premium diesel piston aluminium alloy, called DuraForm-G91. In benchmarking tests, the new alloy provides between three and five times the component life of established as-cast materials in modern, highly loaded, diesel engines. The increased strength of the new material also supports higher mechanical loads, allowing engines to operate at higher specific power and more efficiently. The enhanced alloy properties facilitate piston designs with a lower compression height and reduced mass. The resulting benefits of less reciprocating mass and smaller, lighter cylinder blocks contribute to vehicle CO2 emissions reduction. "This is an example of the enabling technologies developed by Federal-Mogul Powertrain that help...
Pro Fin Capital to increase stake in TERA
Pro Fin Capital Services Ltd., the leading financial solutions and services provider has intimated the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) that it has decided to acquire 80 per cent of the equity capital of Tera Natural Resources and Pellets Private Limited (TERA) in due course. TERA, the bauxite mining company is an existing subsidiary of PROFINC which presently holds 46.92 per cent of its equity capital. The move, on part of PORFINC, is aimed at expanding its decision making ability in TERA and to mobilize the vast reserves of bauxite for which the company has obtained necessary approvals for mining. TERA commenced commercial operations for bauxite mining in the Kolhapur District of Maharashtra, sometime in the first week of July 2015. The total reserves of bauxite in the mines are estimated to...
LME aluminum to fall to $ 1,550-1,580 this week, foresees SMM
LME aluminum will fall to $ 1,550-1,580 per tonne this week, Shanghai Metals Market foresees. Expectations are running that that Chinese aluminum semis will flood into overseas market after Chinese yuan depreciated. This, combined with strong resistance at moving averages, will pressure LME aluminum. SHFE 1510 aluminum might drop to 19,950-12,150 yuan per tonne, as production cuts are insufficient to offset slowing consumption. In China’s spot market, spot discounts will widen to 40-80 yuan per tonne over SHFE 1508 contract.
Madrid to host International Recycled Aluminium Conference
The 'well established' global gathering of aluminium recycling executives known as the International Recycled Aluminium Conference will take place in Madrid from 16-18 November. The Spanish city will thus be the backdrop of an in-depth analysis of the latest trends and challenges facing industry players. This year the conference will kick off with a visit to Hydro Aluminium's re-melt plant at Azuqueca northeast of Madrid. This would provide an excellent opportunity for the delegates to experience state-of-the-art recycling first-hand. Topics to be discussed range from scrap prices and availability to developments in North America; aluminium recycling in the automotive market; the future of non-traditional scrap sources; China's influence on the aluminium market etc. The organisation...
Toyota Tsusho America buys Bermco Aluminum
Stout Risius Ross Inc. (SRR), Southfield, Michigan, a leading middle market investment banking firm, has announced that it served as exclusive financial advisor to Berman Bros. Iron & Metal Co. Inc., dba Bermco Aluminum, in its purchase by Toyota Tsusho America Inc. (TAI), with locations throughout the U.S. and in Canada, Costa Rica and Mexico. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 1921, Bermco Aluminum is a leader in the secondary aluminum smelting industry, converting aluminum scrap into aluminum ingot and sow, serving die-casters and foundries for use primarily in the automotive and lawn and garden industries. Bermco is based in Birmingham, Alabama, with an additional facility in Bessemer, Alabama. Japan-based Toyota Tsusho Corp., the trading affiliate of the Toyota...
Hindalco Q1 net down 67%, lower realisation hits aluminium biz
Lower metal realisation, high finance and depreciation costs have hit the aluminium maker Hindalco's bottomline as it reported a 67 per cent drop in the standalone net profit at INR 107.19 crore for the quarter ended June 30. The flagship firm of the Aditya Birla Group had clocked a net profit of INR 327.50 crore in the year-ago period. Standalone revenue of the company was up 7 per cent to INR 8,575.27 crore in April-June quarter of this fiscal from INR 7,996.14 crore in the same quarter of 2014-15. "The revenue was up mainly on the back of higher volume despite lower commodity prices. The company reported strong operational performance in Q1FY16, but external environment has worsened significantly," Hindalco Managing Director D Bhattacharya told reporters here. The realisations have...
Manaksia Aluminium standalone Jun '15 sales at INR 78.10 crore
Manaksia Aluminium Company has reported a standalone total income from operations of INR 78.10 crore and a net profit of INR 1.10 crore for the quarter ended Jun '15. Other income for the quarter was INR 0.31 crore. For the quarter ended Jun 2014 the standalone total income from operations was INR 57.68 crore and net profit was INR 0.09 crore, and other income INR 1.19 crore. Manaksia Aluminium shares closed at 4.55 on August 13, 2015 (NSE) and has given -74.72% returns over the last 6 months and -74.72% over the last 12 months.
Altech Chemicals' shares on the rise under Iggy Tan
Altech Chemicals closed at $0.10 on Friday last week, more than double the value they were trading at just two months ago. Altech's focus is to transition into a leading producer of 99.99% (4N) High Purity Alumina (HPA) at a low cost. HPA is a high-value product because it is the major source material for scratch-resistant artificial sapphire glass. Sapphire glass is used to produce a range of high-performance electronic applications such as LEDs, semi-conductors, phosphor display screens, as well as new emerging products such as smartphones and tablet devices. Around 70% of HPA demand is in the Asia Pacific region, and Altech’s HPA plant in Malaysia would be well-positioned to benefit. Altech wholly-owns a kaolin deposit at Meckering, Western Australia. Assisting in the re-rating has...
