The global aluminium industry in 2025 entered into a new era where carbon metrics are becoming just as important as cost and quality of the product. With new pricing benchmarks for low-emission products and the increasing impact of regulations like the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), low-carbon aluminium is facing a rising demand across sectors, but especially within the automobile industry. In 2026 and beyond, the rising demand for low-carbon aluminium will become a clearly defined and rise as a valuable segment, driven by unique price signals, market incentives and compliance needs.
Recycled aluminium consumption in automotive sector
In 2024, the global automotive industry, which includes passenger cars, commercial vehicles and motorcycles, recorded a total recycled or secondary aluminium usage between 12.2 million tonnes and 12.5 million tonnes, which is nearly 44 per cent of overall aluminium consumption (both primary and secondary) of 27.52 million tonnes for the overall transportation sector, including railways, aerospace, marine and other, during the same period. This volume is, however, likely to increase to 28.63 million tonnes by 2025.
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