Ahead of the National Day holiday, domestic aluminium ingot inventories continued to set fresh year-to-date lows. According to SMM statistics, as of September 30, electrolytic aluminium ingot inventories in China's major consuming regions stood at 638,000 tonnes, down 36,000 tonnes from Monday and 40,000 tonnes from last Thursday. The pace of pre-holiday destocking was relatively fast overall, leaving ample buffer for inventory accumulation during the holiday. Source: SMM On the supply side, domestic downstream demand recovered somewhat month on month in September, but processing fees for some fabricated products came under pressure, leading some downstream enterprises to cut or suspend production, which lowered their willingness to purchase molten aluminium and pulled the...
In the final three trading days before the National Day holiday, the South China spot market stayed soft: aluminium prices continued to edge lower, the SHFE aluminium backwardation structure strengthened, and premiums over the next-month and far-month contracts were actually elevated. Ahead of the holiday, the willingness to cash out at the high basis was strong, and amid ongoing destocking, discount-priced cargoes still dominated spot circulation; demand was largely subdued, with only localized bargain-hunting replenishment and quite limited buying interest. On the whole, however, the high spot premium for aluminium ingots in South China remained largely intact. As of September 30, the SMM A00 aluminium (Foshan) spot premium over the 2610 contract stood at RMB 260 per tonne, still within...
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Press Metal Group Bhd’s (Press Metal) chief executive officer Datuk Paul Koon gave reassurance that it was business as usual for the group and the outlook of the aluminium market remains upbeat. RHB Research Institute Sdn Bhd (RHB Research) noted that as Press Metal’s share price plunged from an all-time high of RM7.46 to its low of RM5.32 over the last three trading days, the research house hosted a conference call for institutional investors to speak directly with Koon on the latest developments in the company and aluminium industry last Friday. Koon confirmed that he was not aware of any bad news concerning Press Metal’s operations or the aluminium industry as a whole. While he said that aluminum prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) may have dipped after the spot price surpassed...
Rio Tinto bauxite and alumina president Phillip Strachan has been appointed as the new head of the Australian Aluminium Council. Alcoa of Australia's managing director Alan Cransberg has been appointed as the Council's new vice president. Speaking on his new appointment, Strachan said "I look forward to supporting the important role the Council has to play in representing the industry as it faces what are truly the toughest of times, with a high Australian dollar and low global prices". Alumina has been hit particularly hard compared to other commodities over the past two years, with prices falling and major mining companies looking to exit the metal. Rio Tinto has looked to sell of its poorly performing Alcan assets for more than a year now, while BHP spun out its alumina assets in its...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), a leading aluminium producer in the world, welcomed a high-level delegation from the Chinese Embassy on Tuesday, September 30, 2014 to discuss bilateral ties between China and Bahrain as well as seek ways to strengthen business relationships between the two countries. The delegation was headed by HE Mr. Li Chen, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, Mr. Lin Zheming, Counsellor of the Embassy, Mr. Liu Gengsheng, First Secretary, Head of Economic & Commercial Office and Mr. Liu Guipeng, Attache, Economic and Commercial Office. The Chinese officials were welcomed by Alba’s Chief Executive Officer Tim Murray, Chief Financial Officer, Ali Al Baqali, Chief Marketing Officer, Jean Baptiste Lucas, Director for Power & Utilities, Amin Sultan and Director...
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission should probe the London Metal Exchange to ensure aluminum trading and warehousing are free of manipulation, three Democratic senators said in a letter. The regulator must investigate whether LME rules sufficiently protect against conflicts of interest between firms’ trading and warehouse operations, Senators Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin said in the letter dated yesterday. The review should come before the agency grants full registration to the LME as a foreign trading exchange. “The CFTC must start protecting businesses and consumers by using their authority to conduct a thorough review of the ongoing issues destabilizing the aluminum market and ensure that the London Metal Exchange is...
Aluminium futures today traded 0.38 per cent lower at INR 118.75 per kg as speculators reduced their positions amid weak global cues. Further, subdued demand in the domestic spot markets also weighed on the metal prices. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in October eased by 45 paise, or 0.38 per cent, to INR 118.75 per kg in business turnover of 59 lots. Similarly, the metal for delivery in September traded lower by 30 paise, or 0.30 per cent, to INR 117.60 per kg in 146 lots. Market analysts said the weakness in aluminium at futures trade was mostly in tune with a downtrend in base metals at the London Metal Exchange (LME) on concern that demand will slow in China, the biggest metals user, and subdued demand at domestic spot markets.
RHB Research has maintained its BUY call on Press Metal with a fair value of RM8.30, saing it likes the group for its world-class, low-cost smelter in the first quartile of a global cost curve, thanks to its competitive 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA), state-of-the-art smelting technology and strategic plant locations. In a note on Monday, RHB said the improved market dynamics were timely as its smelters had returned to optimum production levels. "As we believe the recent selldown in its share price was not on a fundamental basis, we recommend investors to Buy on weakness. Our RM8.30 FV is derived from a 10% discount to our fully-diluted DCF, implying undemanding 2.4x/2.1x P/BVs and 17.0x/11.9x P/Es on FY14F/15F estimates respectively," it said. RHB noted that Press Metal's CEO...
Local furnace and industrial services company Dickinson Group of Companies, has shown an increase of 60% in business over the course of last 20 years through constant expansion of its specialized industrial services in the aluminium industry. The MD of DRS Mozambique, the aluminium smelter services company in the Dickinson group, Clinton Pretorius says that they offer a wide range of products and services integrated with the aluminium smelter industry. However, cost effectiveness is a key requirement in the industry. DRS Mozambique has continuously adapted their methods to get the maximum benefit while keeping the cost to a minimum. Being in the industry for over two decades, they have worked with giants in the industry like BHP Billiton, Hillside and Bayside smelters in KwaZulu-Natal and...
Granges, the Swedish aluminium subsidiary of the Norwegian company Orkla, has been put up for public offering by the parent company. The initial offer for it has been tagged at an amount between 3.1 billion and 3.7 billion Swedish crowns ($426-508 million). Orkla has been shedding off its metal assets as it is concentrating more on consumer goods recently thus they are offering up to 83 percent of the company at the same time listing the company on the Stockholm Stock Exchange on Oct 10. With the aluminium looking good for the first time in years, as a rolled aluminium producer, Granges should find a good market demand. Orkla confirms on Monday that it will offer up to 83 percent of the total number of shares in Granges, or 61.8 million shares. The shares will be put up on sale at rates...
National Aluminium Company (Nalco), the navratna public sector undertaking under ministry of mines, plans to set up a 100 Mw wind power project with an investment of Rs 660 crore. “The project will be set up shortly at a suitable location in India”, Ansuman Das, chairman cum managing director (CMD) of Nalco said at the company’s 33rd annual general meeting (AGM) here. Selection of wind power developer is underway, he added.Nalco has already commissioned two wind power plants in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. The 50.4 Mw plant in Andhra Pradesh was commissioned in 2012-13 while the Rajasthan unit of 47.6 Mw, built at an investment of Rs 283 crore, was put to operation in January 2014. About 150 million units of electricity were generated from these two plants in 2013-14. In Odisha, the...
Stung by the recent Supreme Court (SC) order, which quashed allocation of 214 coal blocks across the country, National Aluminium Company (Nalco) said it is mulling to file a review petition in the apex court to reconsider its case for Utkal-E, a coal block awarded to the aluminium major that now stands de-allocated. “As per the SC order, the Utkal-E coal block also stands cancelled. We are consulting our lawyers and in all likelihood, Nalco is going to file a review petition in the apex court. We will request the court to reconsider our case and will explain the reasons for delay in developing the block. Some of the reasons for the delay were beyond our control”, said Nalco chairman cum managing director (CMD) Ansuman Das at a press briefing here. Das said, Nalco fulfills both the...
Aluminium futures traded a shade higher at Rs 118.55 per kg today as participants strengthened their positions, supported by an upward trend overseas. Further, rising demand in the domestic spot markets also influenced metal prices. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in September inched up by 15 paise, or 0.13%, to Rs 118.55 per kg in business turnover of 204 lots. Likewise, the metal for delivery in October traded marginally higher by 10 paise, or 0.08%, to Rs 119.75 per kg in 113 lots. Marketmen said apart from increased domestic demand, a firming global trend in the base metals pack at the London Metal Exchange ahead of the US GDP data, mainly influenced metal prices at futures trade here.
UAE-based aluminium giant Emirates Global Aluminium PJSC ("EGA") will showcase the value of project management excellence in its operations, and the strong emergence of the discipline in the UAE, by sponsoring the first Dubai International Project Management Forum ("DIPMF") which takes place on 29 and 30 September 2014. Held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council), the DIPMF has been organised by the Roads and Transport Authority ("RTA"), in cooperation with the Dubai Electricity & Water Authority ("DEWA"), Emaar Properties, and the Project Management Institute ("PMI"). EGA is the jointly-owned aluminium conglomerate formed by Mubadala Development Corporation and Investment Corporation of...
The sustainability report released by Sohar Aluminium (SA) reveals that the company attained 72 per cent Omanisation in 2013. The sustainability report for 2013 was released on Thursday at a ceremony which was attended by H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Said bin Saif al Kalbani, Minister of Social Development, dignitaries, executives, as well as members of the media. The report sheds light on Sohar Aluminium’s sustainability achievements. Addressing the gathering, Mulham Bashir al Jarf, chairman of Sohar Aluminium, in his speech said, “We achieved 72 per cent Omanisation last year. Sohar Aluminium has had a fruitful year achieving several milestones across all spheres.” He added, “The sustainability report focuses on our efforts to create a zero injury workplace, minimise our footprint on the...
Hydro's third quarter results 2014 will be released at 07:00 CET (01:00 AM EST, 06:00 UK time), on Wednesday October 22, 2014. The quarterly report and presentation slides will be available on Hydro website at the same time. Presentation in Oslo Hydro will host a combined analyst and press conference, in English, at its corporate headquarters at Drammensveien 260, Oslo at 08:30 CET the same day. The presentation will be held by President and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg and CFO Eivind Kallevik and can also be seen on web TV. To attend the presentation in Oslo, please register on ir@hydro.com Q&A / Conference Call There will be a Conference Call at 15:00 UK Time (16:00 CET, 10:00 AM EST,) the same day. The Q&A will be held by President and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg and CFO Eivind...
On September 27, the CMD of Nalco, Ansuman Das announced a dividend of INR 387 crore for the 2013-14 fiscal. The announcement was made in a press meet after the 33rd Annual General Body meet. Das explained that the aluminium market was picking up globally due to global cutbacks and the positive demand and supply dynamics with the current LME price currently hovering around $2,000/mt. This has helped the company that is running for 33 years to finally look to expand, divert, enhance sustainability as well as cater to the stakeholders’ expectations. The company has already embarked upon an ambitious growth plan with its upgrade of 4th stream alumina refinery where the capacity has grown from 21 lakh TPY to 22.75 lakh TPY meanwhile in case of bauxite mines the growth has been 6.3 million TPY...
The aluminium market which has been in surplus over the past few years is doing exceptionally well this year, with a climbing LME price and a healthy demand. Much of that has been achieved by global production cutbacks adopted by all the big names in the industry. Now with the aluminium prices at a considerably high and a possible deficit in the global market, Chinese smelters are considering restarting some of their idled smelters. The aluminium benchmark price has increased by 27 percent over the first seven months of the year reaching an 18-month high by the end of August and although the prices have eased since then, they are still a healthy 10 percent higher this year. A poll conducted in July by Reuters with the consensus median forecast of analysts have revealed there is likely to...
The consumer and commercial classes who had accused LME of allowing anti-competitive and monopolistic behavior in its warehousing operations are not happy with the judge’s dismissal of the case. According to the LME owner, they have again appealed against the judge’s verdict. On September, the two sets of plaintiffs from the aluminium industry have filed their appeals at the U.S. Court of Appeals said the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing Ltd (HKEx) in a filing on Thursday. HKEx, having acquired LME in December 2012, commented that their management believes that these appeals are baseless maintains “the claims are without merit and will continue to contest these allegations vigorously.” According to the U.S. District Judge, Katherine Forrest, since the LME was a British Government “organ”,...
Hindalco chairman, Kumar Mangalam Birla announced on Wednesday that they will double their alumina and aluminium capacity after their mega-expansion plans are complete. He also added that their consolidated capital expenditure amounted to $1.5 billion. Adressing the 55th annual Aditya Birla Group general meeting held in Mumbai, Mangalam emphasized that their three strategic Greenfield projects – Utkal Alumina, Mahan Aluminium and Aditya Aluminium – are active and doing well despite the market instabilities. As these projects progress, they will add to the alumina and aluminium capacities of Hindalco doubling it from its current 1.5 million tonnes to 3 million tonnes in case of alumina and 0.6 million tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes for aluminium. He also reported that that their foreign...
