AL Circle Analysis: Guinea’s 150Mt bauxite cap, China’s import swings, US tariffs draw aluminium Q4’26
The global aluminium supply chain is facing a series of changes that extend from bauxite mines and alumina refineries to smelters, regional premiums and finished-metal trade. In 2026, the market’s direction is being shaped not only by production volumes but also by freight costs, export restrictions, shifting Chinese demand and tariffs. Developments across Guinea, Australia, China, Europe and North America point to a market where access to supply is increasingly as important as the availability of raw materials. Bauxite supply: Guinea’s cap meets a well-stocked China, but is it stable? Guinea remains central to the seaborne bauxite market, with its shipment connections to China demonstrating the importance of reliable logistics. A new sea-rail route has enabled a Guinea bauxite shipment...
EU approves Germany’s power relief instrument: Could aluminium producers save €459m annually?
Germany’s aluminium industry could receive some relief from persistently high electricity costs after the European Commission, under the European Union (EU) approved the country’s industrial electricity price scheme for 2026–2028. The measure is intended to ease the burden on energy-intensive businesses, strengthen industrial competitiveness and support Germany’s position as a manufacturing hub. The stakes are particularly high for aluminium producers. Electricity can account for 30–40 per cent of primary aluminium production costs, making power prices a critical factor in operating margins and investment decisions. Explore- Most comprehensive and forward-looking industry-focused report — Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook...
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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...
Chalco to invest $400 million to explore bauxite in Guangxi
Chalco will invest 2.6 billion yuan ($400 million) to explore bauxite in Chongzuo, Guangxi – one of China’s bauxite-rich regions – local media reported. Feasibility report was completed last December, and groundbreaking might start as soon as this June, the media added. Once operational, the project will produce 2.58 million tonnes of bauxite annually, together with 800,000 tonnes of metallurgical-grade alumina, it reported.
Norsk Hydro annual reporting 2014: Better, bigger, greener
"After challenging years, the fundamentals in the aluminium market show some improvement - and our ambitious improvement strategy yields significant results turning Hydro into a strong player well positioned for a better, bigger and greener future," President and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg writes in his letter to shareholders. "The lowered cost of producing a ton of aluminium is not simply a result of shortsighted "cost-cutting", but a lasting result of systematic and determined improvement programs. As earnings outlook has improved, now is the time to prove the strength of our improvement culture: Stepping-up when you have to is one thing, but true culture is reflected through advancements also when not driven by external distress," Brandtzæg says. "Improvements will be supplemented...
Rio Tinto might be counting too much on aluminium for its recovery
Optimism that a recovery in profits at Rio Tinto Group’s aluminium division will counter a slump in iron-ore prices and underpin increased investor returns looks misplaced. When the world’s second-largest mining company reported a 9% dip in underlying profit last month, CEO Sam Walsh touted a turnaround at the unit which emerged from the value-destructive $38bn acquisition of Alcan in 2007. Profit from that business more than doubled to $1.3bn last year. "Aluminium has grown into a significant contributor to group earnings and cash flows," Mr Walsh told analysts last month. "We’re seeing significant improvement in the aluminium business, and I guess everybody is now seeing it." The outlook for aluminium is "souring" as a surge in Chinese exports of the lightweight metal used in everything...
ALG predicts an 11.5% rise in Ford 2015 F-150’s resale values
TrueCar Inc.’s ALG Division has provided statistics that suggests that 2015 F-150 from Ford has gone up 11.5% in resale value as fuel-efficiency seems to beat concerns regarding high repair costs. ALG, who has been setting resale values for cars for more than 50 years, has not been deterred by Ford’s extensive use of aluminium despite the concerns circulating in the industry that price of repairs will rise exponentially. Aluminium has been successfully used in luxury cars like Jaguar in the past, says ALG. In an interview, ALG’s vice president Eric Lyman says that a 2015 F-150 is expected to retain 58% of its value after three years, beating the previous edition’s score of 52%. “We are giving credit for the aluminum construction in the fuel efficiency we’re seeing,” Lyman said. “We are...
Orbite appoints RHI Canada Inc for refractory installation
Orbite Aluminae Inc. today announced that, the Company has appointed RHI Canada Inc. as its contractor for the installation of the refractory system for the decomposer and calcination units at its HPA production facility in Cap-Chat, Quebec. Following certain preparatory activities, refractory installation will commence on March 30, 2015, in line with the previously communicated schedule. Installation is anticipated to take approximatively 8 weeks. "RHI is the undisputed leader in the refractory systems market," stated Denis Arguin, Orbite's Vice President Engineering & Operations. "Based on the breadth and depth of their experience and skill set, we are confident RHI is the right partner for us to help complete our calcination system, a key step towards completion of our plant."
South Goa traffic cell calls for restricted movement for bauxite-laden trucks
South Goa traffic cell has lodged a complaint with the district magistrate to restrict the transportation of bauxite-laden trucks operating between the Naquerim-Betul and Vasco as it causes traffic congestions in the port area, especially during peak times. Trucks are said to make around 220 trips throughout the day on this route with the numbers often increasing. Currently their movement is utterly unrestricted, plying from morning to late nights without any monitoring from the mining department. Heavy-trucks cause severe bottlenecks on the streets, especially in the Navelim junction, Rawanfond junction, Arlem junction and Vasco port regions during peak hours. According to the traffic department, more than half their resources are allotted to oversee the traffic in these regions. Parking...
Venezuela aluminum plant Venalum forced cut to metal quality
Venezuela's state-controlled smelter Venalum, the largest primary aluminum smelter in Latin America, will no longer be able to meet purity standards due to its deteriorating financial situation, according to a company document seen by Reuters. Venalum wrote to warn clients on Wednesday that the iron content of its ingots will exceed established industry limits of 0.3 percent, rising to between 0.55 and 0.9 percent, forcing it to cut prices and making the metal harder for industry buyers to use. "Venalum is unable to manufacture and certify its Primary Aluminum at 99.7 percent (purity)," the document says, citing the company's "difficult financial situation." It did not elaborate. Venalum declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. Primary aluminum is a finished metal used by a host of...
Ukraine High Court decides to take over Rusal’s 68% stake in ZALK
Ukraine High Court has decided that they will nationalize the Zaporizhia (Zaporozhye) alumina and aluminium complex (ZALK) which was acquired by Russian giant Rusal 12 years ago holding a 68% stake at present. The news came via an announcement issued by the General Prosecutor’s office on Thursday. Rusal had abandoned the aluminium plant located in southeastern Ukraine years ago due to low aluminium prices, and the debate surrounding the ownership of the plant had been raging for many years. Ukraine government has started a drive to reclaim all the assets built on Ukrainian territory owned by Russia, after Russia did the same post the Crimea annexation last year, resulting in increased tension between the two countries. According to the prosecutor, the disputed plant is worth 380 billion...
Japan aluminium stocks climb for 11th month, hit record
Aluminium stocks held at three major Japanese ports climbed for an eleventh month to hit a record high at the end of February due to robust imports. Aluminium stocks held at Yokohama, Nagoya and Osaka grew 0.8 percent in February from a month earlier to 453,400 tonnes, Marubeni Corp said on Thursday. The trading house collects data from those key ports. That broke the previous record set in January, the highest level in data going back nearly 15 years. Behind the higher imports are slack demand elsewhere in Asia and China's increased exports of cheaper aluminium products. "We heard that the inflows (to these ports) were still higher than the outflows in February, reflecting high level of imports," said a Tokyo-based trader, who declined to be named. "But an expansion pace of the...
Rusal starts bauxite mining in Guyana
UC Rusal commenced mining operations at its $25 million Kurubuka-22 project, which is located near Kurubuka in Guyana. The bauxite deposit is estimated at 30 million metric tons (mt). Development began in 2013 with construction of the mine, infrastructure development, building of access roads, barge loading facilities at the Berbice River, and a factory that allows the maintenance of a full production cycle from mining to dry bauxite barge loading. Optimization of logistics costs has been reached thanks to a reduction of transportation distance from the mine to a sea reloading point. President of Guyana Donald Ramotar and Vladislav Soloviev, CEO of Rusal, attended the opening ceremony. “The development of the Kurubuka-22 mine is in line with Rusal’s strategy to strengthen vertical...
Constellium reports full-year and fourth quarter 2014 financial results
Constellium N.V. today reported results for the full year and fourth quarter ended December 31, 2014. These results do not include the acquisition of Wise Metals, which closed on January 5, 2015. • 2014 Shipments of 1.1 million metric tons, up 4% versus prior year • 2014 Revenue of €3.7 billion, up 5% • 2014 Adjusted EBITDA of €275 million, including a €23 million unfavorable impact of higher metal premiums, down 2% from €280 million in 2013 • Adjusted free cash flow remains positive despite higher capital expenditures related to previously announced projects • 2014 Diluted EPS of €0.48; EPS excluding unrealized losses on derivatives of €0.84 • Automotive rolled product shipments up 37% in 2014 versus 2013 • Automotive extruded product shipments up 28% in 2014 versus 2013 • Wise Metals...
Clean Sky program pushes for more efficient aircraft recycling
The aviation industry is constantly evolving so that it can design lighter aircraft, reduce consumption and emissions and put in place more efficient recycling systems that allow the valuable materials used to build aircraft to be reused. This is the research context in which the European SENTRY project is positioned; it is an initiative being led by the Basque IK4 R&D Alliance, and is part of the ambitious Clean Sky programme a public-private partnership between the European Commission (EC) and the Aeronautical Industry, set up to bring significant step changes regarding the environmental impact of aviation. The project sets out to conduct the differentiated recycling of alloys used to manufacture aircraft test panels built into a fuselage so that the materials used do not get diverted...
Aluminium likely to flood markets as hoarding metal stops being beneficial
A deluge of aluminum, held as collateral in financing deals, could be released back onto global markets as surging Chinese exports of the metal cause surcharges for physical material to extend their dramatic slide. Premiums - which lurched lower for the first time last month after years of hitting record highs - are also facing pressure from market reform aimed at untangling controversial storage practices and the prospect of higher U.S. interest rates. The surcharges, paid by buyers on top of the London Metal Exchange cash price to obtain immediate delivery of metal, had soared by up to nine-fold since 2009. This was partly due to expensive backlogs at LME-registered warehouses of up to two years to get access to material. They have already shed 10-15 percent in Asia, Europe and the...
Aluminium rises by 0.2% on global cues
Aluminium futures rose by 0.23% to INR 111.05 per kg today as speculators enlarged exposures on pick up in spot demand and a firming trend in base metals overseas. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium prices for delivery in March traded higher by 25 paise, or 0.23%, at INR 111.05 per kg in a business turnover of 136 lots. Similarly, the metal for delivery in March traded higher by 20 paise, or 0.18%, to INR 111.95 per kg in 69 lots. Analysts said rising demand from consuming industries at domestic spot markets and the metal's strength at the London Metal Exchange (LME), where it rebounded from 10-month low before industrial output data from the world's largest metals consumer China, mainly influenced aluminium prices at futures trade here. Globally, aluminium for delivery in three...
Press Metal Phase 3 expansion progressing well and on schedule
The Phase 3 of the Press Metal Bhd’s aluminium smelter in Samjalu Industrial Park is showing good progress while maintain the high environmental standards, revealed CEO Datuk Paul Koon to a local newspaper on Thursday. Land clearances have almost come to a close while construction is progressing smoothly and on schedule to increase the capacity of the metal production which will prove beneficial at a time when demand for the metal is growing, says Koon. “The demand for aluminium continues to grow. Although Malaysians are concerned with low oil price and implementation of Goods and Services Tax, almost 90 per cent of our sales are for export markets,” he said in an email interview. After the expansion, Press Metal hopes to double its aluminium smelting capacity to 640,000 tons from the...
