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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Cadillac CT6 to use 64 percent of aluminium in its construction
Cadillac CT6, the aluminium intensive luxury sedan, launches an ad campaign with the tagline “Dare Greatly” and the car is attempting to embody that motto. The car will feature a range of turbocharged engines, with coveted turbo V8 supposedly in the list, a possible plug-in Hybrid and streaming rearview mirror making it seem like quite the tech showcase. Although engineers have used some high-strength steel for reinforcing the cabin and B-pillar, aluminium plays a vital role in the car construction, a metal that has become almost mandatory in the luxury field recently. Nearly 64 percent of the CT6 is aluminium including the entire exterior. The company claims that extensive use of the light metal has helped shave off 198 pounds of weight as compared to steel.
ISRI updates on Superfund Recycling Equity Act (SREA)
The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) today announced that the ordering period opens on Monday, March 16, for the Superfund Recycling Equity Act (SREA) Reasonable Care Compliance Program Reports. Beginning March 16 and running through April 30, ISRI members have an exclusive opportunity to sign up for due diligence reports on the scrap consuming facilities to which they ship recyclable materials. The reports help ISRI members demonstrate the due diligence required by law in order to be exempt from SREA. “The SREA Reasonable Care Compliance Program Reports help save ISRI members both time and money,” said Robin Wiener, president of ISRI. “Members are spared from having to dig through public records before determining whether or not to ship to a customer. I strongly encourage...
Uncertainties surrounding Hindalco affecting its market performance
Hindalco stocks were seen to slide on Monday by as much as 6 percent in an otherwise dull trading session ending the day at INR 126.90 on the BSE, still down by 3.4 percent. Reasons for the weak performance in the market is attributed to the uncertainty surrounding the company, with coal blocks like Dumri put on hold by the government as well as the CBI probe surrounding the Talabira-II mine controversy. There are even reports that the CBI has filed a fresh First Information Report (FIR) against the company and has started probing into diversion of coal from Talabira-I mine. Market experts say that whenever there is re-examination surrounding a company, it raises doubts and investors do not appreciate uncertainties and doubts. The coal issue has been highly controversial involving...
Ford’s aluminum F-150 pickup truck is selling fast
The latest generation of Ford’s single most important vehicle model is being snapped up almost as fast as it arrives at dealerships. Ford F 1.85% executives will swear they were highly confident all along that shoppers — especially loyal owners of Ford F Series pickups — would rush to buy the automaker’s new aluminum-body truck. Now that their confidence has been rewarded, Ford is breathing a joyful sigh of relief. New-model introductions are never a sure thing — even slam-dunks occasionally carom off the rim. However, signs increasingly are positive that the latest generation of Ford’s single most important vehicle model, the F-150 pickup truck, is being snapped up almost as fast as it arrives at dealerships. On Friday, production began at Ford’s Kansas City assembly plant. Ford’s...
Aleris to announce fourth-quarter and full-year 2014 financial results on March 27
Aleris is scheduled to announce fourth-quarter and full-year 2014 financial results on Friday, March 27, 2015. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Steve Demetriou and Chief Financial Officer Eric Rychel will host an earnings conference call to discuss the company's fourth-quarter and full-year 2014 results and take questions from analysts at 9 a.m. ET on Friday, March 27, 2015. Conference Call and Slide Presentation • Live dial-in number: 1-866-364-3817 or 1-412-902-4207 for international callers • Please ask for the Aleris Call (Please dial in 10 minutes before conference call start time) • Live webcast: http://www.videonewswire.com/event.asp?id=101868 • Analysts who wish to ask a question following the prepared remarks should press "star and 1" on their push button phone during the...
Altech appoints ATEA group as its composite supply partner
Highlights • Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed for partnership with Atea • Atea to supply and install dual-laminate anti - corrosive composite materials for Altech’s high purity alumina (HPA) plant • Extensive expertise in design and construction of plant materials and equipment for extreme operating environments in Asia • Manufacturing plant in Penang, Malaysia Altech Chemicals Limited is pleased to announce that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Atea Environmental Group (Atea) appointing it as the partner for the supply of dual-laminate anti-corrosive composite plant and equipment for Altech’s proposed high purity alumina (HPA) plant. Dual-laminate composite materials are highly specialised fluoro-plastics that can withstand hydrochloric acid duty at elevated...
Rio Tinto adds 15 new apprentices at Weipa bauxite operation
Fifteen new apprentices have picked up their tools and launched their careers in the mining sector with Rio Tinto’s Weipa bauxite operation. The recruits will develop skills in fields such as diesel fitting, fitting and turning, electrical, and boilermaking over the next three to four years to gain a nationally recognised trade certificate. Four of the apprentices are Aboriginal people, including the recipient of this year’s Ely Apprenticeship, Yupungathi traditional owner PJ Ahmat. The Ely Apprenticeship is awarded each year to a local Aboriginal person who has a connection to one of the six traditional owner groups represented in Weipa’s Ely Bauxite Mining Project Agreement, or to someone who has a historical connection with the communities of Mapoon, Napranum or New Mapoon. The...
Discount on Bauxite Levy to be repealed under Jamaican Budget 2015-16
In Jamaica’s Budget for the financial year 2015-16, the government will repeal the discount given on the bauxite levy and companies will now have to pay full amount. Dr. Phillips told the House that there has been a positive wave in the international market that has also boosted the price of bauxite and alumina. As a result, the Prime Minister feels that the discount should be repealed so that the earnings from the levy can be used for overall growth of the country. "While we understand the reasons in the past, which both administrations have had to engage in to discount or relieve production companies of the requirements under the Bauxite Levy Act, the interim regime in respect of the bauxite levy which was negotiated in 2008/9 came to an end last December. The full levy is now due and...
Emirates Global Aluminium is strategic partner of Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) 2015
The UAE Ministry of Economy , organisers of Annual Investment Meeting (AIM), has announced that Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has been named strategic partner of the 5th edition of the event which will be held at the Dubai international Convention and Exhibition Center from March 30 to April 1, 2015, under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE, and Ruler of Dubai. His Excellency Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Saleh, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy - Foreign Trade sector, hailed EGA as a major supporter of the national economy and a global giant in the production of aluminium. "We consider its strategic partnership with AIM as a symbol of its support to innovation and this move will highlight the significance of industrial...
Nalco declares dividend at INR 322.15 crore
Public sector aluminium firm National Aluminium Co. Ltd (Nalco) has declared an interim dividend of INR 322.15 crore for the current fiscal on the paid up equity share capital of INR1,288.62 crore. The dividend of 25%—INR.1.25 per share of INR 5 each—was approved in the meeting of Nalco’s board of directors held at New Delhi on Thursday, a company release said in Bhubaneswar on Friday. Navaratna public sector undertaking (PSU) Nalco, which started its commercial operations in 1987, has been earning profits consistently and declaring dividends since 1992. In last fiscal, the company had declared a total dividend of INR 386.59 crore, it said. It may be noted that since inception, Nalco has paid a total of INR4,906 crore as dividend including INR 4,234 crore as share of Union government, the...
Aluminium industry bags more coal mines indicating rising demand for the metal in India
In the recent Indian coal auctions, aluminium bagged more coal mines than steel as a result of aggressive bidding from aluminium producers pointing to a rising domestic demand for the metal. While aluminium is an energy intensive metal to produce, steel needs to coal as a reduction agent to form the iron and carbon alloy. Steel plants collectively owned majority of coal mines, 83 percent of the total coal reserves available across the 31 auctioned blocks, but after the auctions they now own only 32 percent. Aluminium producers earlier had only one percent share in the total coal reserves but now they have ownership of 36 percent of available coal reserves. Demand for the lighter metal is seen to be on the rise according to market analysis and aided by the weaker dollar has had a positive...
Orbite receives notice of allowance for red mud monetization patent in the USA
Orbite Aluminae Inc. is pleased to announce that the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") has issued a notice of allowance for patent application No. 14/371,364, pertaining to Processes for Treating Red Mud. Orbite had previously received a notice of allowance by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office ("CIPO"), as announced on January 8, 2015. Following the favorable opinion in terms of novelty, inventive steps, and industrial applicability received for its International Application, Orbite filed national phase entries in various countries and used the Patent Prosecution Highway, where allowed, to accelerate patent application examination and patent issuance. The US and Canadian Red Mud patent applications were treated under this accelerated process. Red mud is the waste...
Aluminum-alloy body Ford F-150s rolling off the Claycomo assembly line
The first new aluminum F-150 rolled off the assembly line at the Ford plant on Friday. The company now has more than 7,000 workers in the metro area. A more than $1-billion investment in the facility is paying off as the latest manufacturing technology is producing new pickup trucks. An aluminum-alloy body comes off the assembly line every 52 seconds. Five hundred new robots use riveting and structural adhesives to make what Ford calls a tougher, more durable truck. “Today this facility one of our most advanced in the entire world,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of the Americas. “It has one of the largest hourly workforces of any plant in Ford Motor Company’s global network, with more than 7,000 employees.” Cameras on the robots take scans to ensure quality standards are met. And...
Asia Automotive Lightweight Procurement Symposium 2015 to be held from 6th-8th July in Shanghai
AluMag is organizing the only one of its kind symposium focusing on automotive lightweighting, supply chain and procurement management which will be held in Shanghai and Detroit in 2015 and Dusseldorf in 2016. The Asia Automotive Lightweight Procurement Symposium 2015 will take place from the 6th – 8th of July 2015 at the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel in Shanghai featuring keynote speakers and exhibitors from Audi, DGS Druckguss, JSC, Novelis and Magna. There will also be other potential keynote speakers from BMW Powertrain, Daimler Trucks, General Motors of Shanghai, Tatasteel, Qoros, UACJ, Volkswagen and the like. The 2nd AluMag symposium is held in the days leading up to the ALUMINIUM China and China Diecasting shows, both taking place at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre which is...
Aleris attains qualification to supply aluminium plates to Boeing from Zhenjiang
Aleris announced today that its rolling mill in Zhenjiang, China has attained qualification to supply aluminum aerospace plate to Boeing. This achievement establishes Aleris as a qualified supplier of aluminum plate from its Zhenjiang mill for use in the production of various Boeing aircraft. Aleris' facility in Koblenz, Germany, has supplied aluminum aerospace plate to Boeing for decades. Aleris Zhenjiang, which opened in early 2013, was modeled after the Koblenz facility to meet the needs of both global and regional aircraft manufacturers by establishing a local supply of aluminum aircraft plate in Asia Pacific. "The achievement of the Boeing qualification represents the final major milestone in our strategy to serve the global aerospace industry from our new facility in Zhenjiang,...
Alba completes upgrading of Potline control systems for reduction lines 4 and 5
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba)’s, a leading aluminium smelter in the world, in line with its commitment to continue strengthening its credentials as an efficient aluminium producer, successfully carried out the upgrade of the Potline control systems for Reduction Lines 4 and 5 with the Alpsys system. The Alpsys system features include enhanced control features and fast monitoring to maintain optimum pot parameters which will improve performance and also enhance safety. Speaking on this project, Alba’s Acting Director for Potlines, Abdulla Habib said: “Alba continues to push the limits on improving operational performance. The upgrade to the new Alpsys system is a major milestone and will improve productivity and safety. I congratulate the teams for completing the project on time and...
Rusal raises China aluminium exports with Australian government
Top global aluminium producer Rusal said it has raised China's swelling aluminium exports with the Australian government, and wants the issue tabled at the next meeting of the world's top customs body. John Hannagan, chairman of Rusal Australia, and a director of the Australian Aluminium Council, said he had alerted the Australian government to China's rising exports. "I have contacted both Customs and the Trade minister's office seeking to have the matter of China semis ... put on the agenda of the next meeting of the World Customs Organisation," Hannagan told Reuters. China is the world's top producer and consumer of aluminium, as well as semis, semi-manufactured shapes used in everything from window frames to beer cans. Exports of primary aluminium ingots attract heavy export duties in...
Germany's aluminum company builds first Asian production base
Handtmann Group, Germany's largest family-owned aluminum foundry, has established its wholly-owned subsidiary in the northern port city of Tianjin. Handtmann Light Metal Foundry (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. is located in Tianjin Airport Economic Area, the administrative committee of the area said Sunday. With a total investment of about 75 million euros, the newly established company is their first production base in Asia and will primarily manufacture gearbox shells and clutch housings for automaker Volkswagen. The company, which covers an area of 52,000 square meters and owns 12 die casting machines and two smelting furnaces, is capable of processing 27,000 tonnes of powdered aluminum for producing nearly two million gearbox and clutch housings per year. It is estimated that its annual turnover...
