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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Romanian aluminum producer Alro borrows USD 200 million
Romanian aluminum producer Alro Slatina will get USD 200 million (EUR 179 million) loans from local and international banks. It will borrow USD 60 million from the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), a financial institution whose shareholders are the 11 countries bordering the Black Sea. The bank was founded by Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine, which are also the 11 founding countries of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation. The aluminum producer will also take USD 120 million from a syndicate of banks, to finance an older loan taken from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. It has also borrowed USD 27 million from local lender Raiffeisen Romania. The company, which is the biggest aluminum...
Nalco may soon get composite licence over Pottangi mines
The decks are slowly clearing for navratna firm National Aluminium Company (Nalco) to obtain a composite licence (prospecting licence cum mining lease) over Pottangi bauxite deposits. "Nalco's case for a composite licence over Pottangi mines is now under scrutiny at the highest level. The state government after considering all aspects will seek approval from the Union mines ministry for grant of composite licence to Nalco," said a government official. The Pottangi mines in Koraput district with deposits of 75 million tonne bauxite has already been reserved in favour of the PSU. Nalco authorities could not be reached for comments on the matter. The state government has decided to recommend Nalco's case for composite licence after the aluminium major committed to fulfil its conditions....
Cost-saving ultrasound degassing now possible in continuous processing of molten aluminium
Having proved that ultrasound degassing of molten aluminium alloys is cleaner, greener and cheaper than current methods, a team of scientists from Brunel University London working within a European consortium has now taken the breakthrough a step further. De-gassing the melts of aluminium alloys is a vital process otherwise the resulting solid metals end up being highly porous and often rejected for further use. Project lead Prof Dmitry Eskin of the Brunel Centre for Advanced Solidification Technology explains: “The most common current method, argon rotary degassing, is energy intensive, involves rotating brittle parts and expensive argon gas. “Having proved that ultrasound is cheaper, greener and just as efficient we wanted to look at achieving a continuous process that would allow us to...
New aluminium-hulled rescue vessel for Northern Sydney
A New $470,000 offshore rescue vessel has arrived at the Marine Rescue Cottage Point unit, boosting the emergency capability of Marine Rescue NSW volunteers on Northern Sydney waters. MR Cottage Point Unit Commander Paul Millar said members have been out in force to inspect the keenly-anticipated Cottage Point 30 and familiarise themselves with their new rescue vessel. The 11.5m vessel was built by Sailfish Catamarans in Alstonville, inland from Ballina on the NSW North Coast. After passing its sea trials on the Richmond River at Ballina in mid-June, it was trucked south to Sydney and was launched at Brooklyn where MR Cottage Point crew members took over and steered it home. “The Sailfish is the largest twin-hulled vessel in the Marine Rescue fleet,” UC Millar said. “Its eight-tonne...
Alcoa ups aluminium output estimate, bearish for prices
Alcoa Inc.’s revised outlook for aluminium in 2015 comes close on the heels of a sharp fall in metal prices. Aluminium on the London Metal Exchange (LME) has fallen 15.3% since a year ago and by 6% since 1 June. Alcoa’s results for the June quarter reflect the impact of falling prices, although the company benefited from productivity gains. Alcoa’s outlook for aluminium is more interesting for Indian investors. There is good and bad news. The demand growth forecast for 2015 is held steady at 6.5%. And aluminium inventory is down at 62 days at the end of the June quarter compared with 66 days in the preceding quarter. But this did nothing to prevent prices from falling during the quarter. The bad news is on the supply-demand balance. The surplus in the aluminium market is projected at...
Warehouse crackdown cuts aluminum costs
Manufacturers of goods from cars to soda cans are benefiting from declining aluminum costs, a sign that new warehouse rules aimed at loosening the grip of Wall Street banks are having the desired effect. For the past four years, customers have had to wait months and sometimes years to remove aluminum from storage, or pay large fees to avoid the delays. The London Metal Exchange, the world’s largest venue for metals trading, in February forced clogged warehouses to remove more metal than they take in. Aluminum-delivery charges, called premiums in industry parlance, have plunged 65% since the LME implemented the new rules. At the time, premiums accounted for 22% of the total cost of metal borne by industrial consumers. Now, they make up just 9.7%. Other factors are helping reduce the prices...
High-cost Chinese aluminum smelters under growing pressure to cut output
High-cost aluminum smelters in China are under growing pressure to cut output against falling aluminum prices, Shanghai Metals Market notes. Some 7.85 million-tpy aluminum capacity in China - 22.3% of the country’s operational aluminum capacity - were operating above the cash costs of 13,000 yuan per tonne as of the end of June, SMM statistics showed. These capacities concentrate in Guizhou, Guangxi, Qinghai, Ningxia, Hubei, Yunnan, etc. Of them, 60% of smelters are small ones with annual capacity at less than 200,000 tonne. A majority of these small smelters suffer from high power costs due to a lack of captive power plants, thus bearing the brunt of falling aluminum prices. SMM spot aluminum prices hit over six-year low of 12,050 yuan per tonne on July 8.
Agreement reached to end production at Sapa Extrusion Perfialsa
Sapa has reached an agreement with the workers to end production at the Perfialsa extrusion plant in Arteixo, Spain, on September 30, 2015. The company announced its intention to cease operations of the plant one month ago, and after a peaceful negotiation process, an agreement has been reached. All employees at the plant will be affected by collective dismissal. "We would like to express our appreciation to all Perfialsa employees for the responsibility and the professionalism shown during the entire process," says Hermano Gouveia, managing director of Sapa Profiles Iberia. "We think that the agreement is satisfactory for all parties and we are pleased to have come to a conclusion." John Thuestad, executive vice president responsible for Sapa's Extrusion Europe business area, says he is...
Recycling key to sustain Non-Ferrous sector
Non-ferrous metals and minerals sector is facing a grim situation due to falling of stocks in China and economy meltdown in Greece. Amidst this scenario, the domestic market in India has turned fiercely competitive, Chairman and Managing Director, NALCO, NR Mohanty said. Addressing the 19th International Conference on Non-Ferrous Minerals and Metals - 2015 held here on Friday, Mohanty said that creativity, re-engineering and innovation in the sector would help it withstand the situation. Players in the non-ferrous market should focus on resource conservation, greener technology and effective and proper disposal of effluents. There is enough space in Indian market for co-existence and the companies can sustain profitably by knowledge sharing, he said. “It is high time for aluminium...
Alba strengthens business ties with Asian customers
Attuned to get closer to its customers around the globe, Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), a world’s leading aluminium smelter, has had official delegation visiting some of its key customers in Asia and Pacific Region. The delegation comprised of Alba’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Murray, along with the Acting Chief Marketing Officer, Khalid A. Latif, Sales Manager of Asia & Pacific, Yogesh Kumar, and Sales Officer of Alba’s Hong Kong Office, Enoch Kwok. This visit aimed to improve customer satisfaction, give more insights on Line 6 Expansion Project as well as expand Alba’s customer base across Asia. In addition, Alba took part in Aluminium China 2015 from 8-10 July 2015 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre in China. Held every year, this conference is considered as one of...
Chinese cut spot aluminium purchases due to liquidity crunch
Buyers of copper and aluminium in China reduced spot purchases in the domestic and international markets this week after the country's equity market rout reduced the liquidity for the buying, people in the industry said. Merchants and factories that buy the metals for manufacturing of semi-finished products such as copper rods and aluminium profiles appear to be holding less cash than they need for spot purchases, the people said. The decline in liquidity comes as equity prices fall, stock trading suspensions lock in investments, and loans linked to stocks fall in price. "End-users have some liquidity problems, limiting their buying this week," said a trader at a state-owned refined copper producer, who was not authorised to speak with media and so declined to be identified. "We don't...
Fives acquires ECL, a specialist in the design and installation of equipment for primary aluminium production
Fives announces the acquisition of ECL, a specialist in the design and installation of equipment used to produce primary aluminium. ECL will become a new entity within Fives and bring a high level of complementary technical strengths and sales strategies. Founded in 1947, and became a subsidiary of Péchiney in 1970 until its acquisition by Rio Tinto Alcan, ECL is a world leader in the design and installation of equipment used to produce aluminium, with a particular focus on Pot Tending Machines (PTMs), Furnace Tending Assembly (FTA) machines, and Anode Rodding equipment. More than half of the world’s operating aluminium smelters outside China use equipment supplied by ECL. The company also developed an offer of high-added value services (spare parts, maintenance, and modernization). It...
Constellium makes new progress on its sustainability agenda
Constellium has detailed its progress on sustainability in its recently published “Business and sustainability Performance Report 2014”. The company’s long-standing commitment to sustainability began in 2012 with the definition of an ambitious roadmap made of commitments and targets on four main pillars: development and manufacturing of sustainable products; safety and skill development; reduction of the environmental impact of operations; and conducting business responsibly with respect to governance and supply chain. Our 2014 sustainability achievements are: • We undertook a materiality assessment process that enabled our reporting to G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines and that guides our sustainability approach • We achieved 13% of sales from innovative products, ahead of our 10%...
Aluminium being squeezed on spurt in output
Production numbers are creating sleepless nights for the stakeholders of Aluminium. There has been a constant surge in the world production of Aluminium thanks to China that has kept on subsidizing the production units so that they do not become dormant. The result has been that the production from smaller and even larger units from China has remained rampant, and is affecting the world production numbers as a whole. The prices on the other hand have been unable to bear that brunt. The prices of LME Aluminium have declined by more than 7% till July 2015. MCX Aluminium has also declined by 5% marginally lower than London counterpart due to currency fluctuations and improving domestic consumption and emphasis of government of Make in India programme. The production of Aluminium reached...
Aluminum Association welcomes three new member companies
The Aluminum Association announced today the addition of three new member companies -- HEICHE GROUP US Surface Technology; Phinix, LLC; and Walter Surface Technologies. The firms join as associate members – firms that supply the North American aluminum industry with goods and services. The new member additions come at a time of continued demand growth for aluminum. According to recent preliminary Aluminum Association data, the North American aluminum industry shipped an estimated 25.5 billion pounds of aluminum in 2014, the most since 2006. More recent data shows 3.1% year-over-year demand growth through April 2015. From the 2009 baseline, demand for the metal in the U.S. and Canada has risen by nearly 40 percent. “We’re excited to welcome these new member companies to the Aluminum...
LME Aluminum to rise to $ 1,670-1,710 next week
LME aluminum will rise to $ 1,670-1,710 per tonne next week, Shanghai Metals Market foresees. The price rise will be driven by positive technical side, easing Greek debt crisis and impressive rally of Chinese stock market. SHFE 1509 aluminum contract will face upward correction after sharp fall, but poor market fundamentals will curb the upside room. The contract should range 12,400-12,600 yuan per tonne. In China’s spot market, growing bullishness before upcoming delivery of SHFE 1507 aluminum contract will allow spot discounts to narrow to 30-70 yuan per tonne.
AWAC considering bauxite shipments after Indonesian ban
The AWAC global alumina alliance of Alcoa and the ASX--listed Alumina is exploring the potential to ship bauxite from its Western Australia operations to fill the supply hole caused by Indonesia’s ban on exports of the alumina raw material. AWAC and its predecessors have been producing bauxite for integrated alumina operations in WA’s Darling Ranges since the 1960s but exporting the lower value bauxite has long been considered uneconomic because of its low grade. But Darling Ranges bauxite contains lower levels of reactive silica, which means less caustic soda is required in its processing. That helps make it more competitive with higher grade material from tropical regions, at a time when China in particular is looking for replacement supplies following Indonesia’s 2014 ban on exports —...
Hal Aluminium Mexico to create new jobs with aluminium casting plant
Hal Aluminium Mexico, dedicated to the casting of aluminum and manufacture of automotive parts, will open a second plant in Puerto Interior which will offer 400 vacancies including industrial engineering, robotics and mechanical engineers. The coordinator of recruitment and selection of staff at Hal Aluminium Mexico, Amy Ramirez said that they will create about 400 new jobs with this new project at various operational levels whereas now they employ about 200 persons. The automotive sector company participated during the work day organized by the Directorate General Economics on July 3, 2015, an event in which 50 companies offered more than 1000 job vacancies. The Deputy Director of Employment Promotion of Leon, Pilar Hernandez Camacho, reported that from January to June the agency has...
