Iran is expanding its domestic aluminium manufacturing capabilities through nanostructured anodising technology, developing specialised aluminium sheets and profiles for applications across aerospace, medical equipment, electronics and automotive industries. The initiative reflects a move towards higher-value aluminium products by improving the metal's surface properties and expanding its potential industrial applications. According to Pars Today, citing Mehr News Agency, an Iranian aluminium complex is using the technology to produce aluminium components with nanostructured ceramic coatings designed to improve resistance to corrosion and wear. The complex is also working on developing specialised aluminium standards and has so far established eight standards in this field. The...
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has been named a strategic partner of Dubai Future Week 2026, highlighting the aluminium producer's focus on industrial innovation, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing as the UAE looks to strengthen its future industrial capabilities. Organised by the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), Dubai Future Week will take place from November 18 to 21, 2026, at Emirates Towers and the Museum of the Future under the theme 'For the Human of the Future'. The event is expected to attract more than 10,000 participants, including business leaders, policymakers, investors, entrepreneurs, innovators and technology experts from around the world. EGA's participation will bring attention to its ongoing industrial transformation, which includes developing proprietary...
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Outgoing New Zealand Aluminium Smelters general manager Ryan Cavanagh has released his final review on the Tiwai Pt smelter. Mr Cavanagh, who has been the company's general manager since 2009, is leaving this week to take up the role of general manager at Pacific Aluminium's Gove bauxite mine and alumina refinery in Australia's Northern Territory. The New Zealand Aluminium Smelters 2012 Sustainable Development Review outlines its performance in health and safety, people commitment, energy, power, financial strength, environment, community operational excellence and market position. The report shows the Tiwai smelter consumed 17,778,962 gigajoules last year. Electricity intensity was 54.4 gigajoules/tonne of saleable aluminium and energy intensity was 71.9 gigajoules/ tonne of saleable...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. is playing host to more than 100 of its local, regional and international customers and suppliers to give them an experience of Bahrain's premier sporting event - the Formula One Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2013 at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir from April 19 to 21, 2013. Alba 's guests have been specially invited to watch the three-day sporting event, enjoy some of Bahrain's tourist attractions as well as meet with Alba representatives in seeing how best to further strengthen commercial ties. As a partner of the Bahrain International Circuit, Alba has its own private lounge along the circuit's Oasis Complex and part of the exclusive Paddock Club area. It offers a vantage point for viewing all the excitement and glamour of the Formula One race up...
Aluminium last week pierced the 3 year trend line at 1827 but bounced quickly from 1818 & we expected this to mark the low for the 2 month sell off. We could see some weakness at the start of this week to 1873 then good support at 1860. However we cannot rule out a break lower to 1850/41 & possibly even a test of the 1818 lows. This should offer a very good buying opportunity once again. 1902 is our first resistance & we should struggle here but a move higher could retest 1926/28. A break higher looks unlikely today but if seen could take us to 1953/58.
The US existing home sales dropped 0.6% in March to an annualized 4.92 million units, far below expectations. The consumer confidence index in the euro zone was in negative territory, but did improve some from previous reading. This eased market worries and forced the US dollar index to surrender gains during the European session. In response, LME aluminum jumped from USD 1,869/mt to above USD 1,890/mt at the tail of trading. Gains were limited by resistance the 20-day moving average, though. Finally, LME aluminum closed 0.58% higher at USD 1,893/mt. Latest LME aluminum inventories decreased 9,225 mt to 5,176,850 mt. Aluminum prices will remain low as markets are expecting slower growth in HSBC’s China April PMI, which is due today. LME aluminum will continue to meet resistance at USD...
As Rio Tinto and Meridian Energy haggle over the price of power for the Tiwai Pt aluminium smelter, optimism about the metal's future has faded in line with modest expectations for world growth, Deutsche Bank says in its quarterly commodities report. The bank said the "considerable" optimism with which the market began the year faded fast by the end of the first quarter. "Continued weakness in Europe has been exacerbated by disappointing demand from China and other emerging/developing markets," it said. "Only the United States seems to be performing well in terms of growth and this is far from sufficient to meaningfully improve aluminium balances." Complicating matters is the fact that millions of tonnes of aluminium lie in warehouses thanks to growth in so-called aluminium financing...
Meridian Energy and the owners of its largest customer, the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter, are continuing to talk after an intense three days' face to face negotiation last week, with parties in both Wellington and Sydney crunching numbers on possible new deals. Neither side will comment on the record, but BusinessDesk understands efforts to find common ground on a new 18 year supply contract continue. Nor would the smelter owner Pacific Aluminium, a Rio Tinto subsidiary, comment on the potential to strike a further new deal in the future under a Labour-Greens government for lower power costs. Labour and the Greens are arguing the cost of hydro-electricity is as low as $1 per Megawatt hour, and companies such as Meridian are making "super-profits" by selling it at wholesale electricity...
His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa has affirmed the importance of consolidating complementarity and coordination among GCC states, especially in the industrial sector which has become a main pillar of the entity's economic strength. The Gulf Aluminum Council conferred its shield on HRH Premier in recognition of his pioneering role in establishing the aluminum industry in the GCC region, which started from Bahrain. During the audience, HRH Premier pointed out that GCC states should give top priority to preserving the achievements attained for their citizens and building on them in order to ensure a better future for the coming generations, praising GCC countries' development strides in which their citizens played a crucial role. The Prime Minister...
Aluminium Middle East 2013, the third edition of the leading exhibition for aluminium products, technologies and investments in the Middle East which begins in Dubai, has announced a new B2B Business Matching Program that will make it easier for exhibitors to forge connections through an extensive database of business contacts and companies from the UAE, KSA, GCC, North Africa, Levant, Turkey, India, South Africa, Asia and Australia. The new Business Matching Program, which has already identified over 200 serious buyers from the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, China, India, Pakistan, Russia, Romania and Canada seeking perfect matches for their sourcing requirements, is in line with the mission of Aluminium Middle East 2013 to ultimately increase the region's global market share and help boost...
Economic data from China and the US were discouraging. Worries over the European debt crisis remain. The UK’s AAA credit rating was downgraded by Moody’s in February, and revised down again last Friday by Fitch. The US dollar index broke through resistance at all the moving averages during the European session, sending LME aluminum below all moving averages. Finally, LME aluminum closed at an intraday low of USD 1,882/mt, down 1.72%. Latest LME aluminum inventories decreased 8,500 mt to 5,186,075 mt. The earthquake in Sichuan yesterday triggered market worries. LME aluminum may be unable to regain USD 1,900/mt, with prices between USD 1,850-1,895/mt on Monday. SHFE 1306 aluminum contract is expected to open lower at RMB 14,500/mt and move in a RMB 14,450-14,550/mt range. Wait-and-see...
BHP Billiton executives will work under a more frugal pay regime, after new chief executive Andrew Mackenzie reshuffled and redesigned the company's leadership ranks. The BHP board has used the management reshuffle - which included the demotion of petroleum chief Mike Yeager, ferrous boss Marcus Randolph and aluminium's Alberto Calderon from the company's top ranks - as an opportunity to wind back the level of remuneration being paid to top brass. Mr Mackenzie is himself expected to earn about 25 per cent less than his predecessor, Marius Kloppers, in a reflection of the tougher times being felt across the mining industry and the broader economy. Mr Mackenzie will also be paid a lower pension benefit, have a tighter cap on short-term bonuses, and his minimum shareholding requirements will...
Loss-making Bosnian aluminium smelter Aluminij Mostar will dip into capital reserves and may cut more jobs, in an attempt to stay afloat while it tries to access international funding. The general manager of Aluminij, Bosnia's biggest exporter and a major employer, on Friday said he was hopeful that a long-standing ownership row with the government of Bosnia's Muslim-Croat federation could be resolved in the next few days. That would clear the way for Aluminij to seek finance from organisations such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank. Aluminij, which sells aluminium mainly to the depressed European construction and auto industries, warned last month that it may face closure if it posted a similar or...
More than 125 people gathered at TRUMPF’s Laser Technology Center in Plymouth, MI, on April 4, 2013, for a technical seminar on laser joining of aluminum. Attendees learned about autogenous laser joining, the benefits of using filler wire, remote laser welding, and laser joining in the European automotive industry. The event was co-sponsored by Fraunhofer USA and included various presentations relating to the laser joining process, specifically in automotive applications. "The 2025 federal mandate for increased fuel economy has motivated automotive engineers to research weight-reducing options," said David Havrilla, manager – products and applications at TRUMPF center. "The overwhelming response to our Laser Joining of Aluminum Symposium is proof that the use of aluminum and laser welding...
Aluminum demand (shipments by domestic producers, plus imports) in the US and Canada totaled an estimated 3.908 billion lb through February, up 1.4% over the same time period last year, according to preliminary estimates released Friday by the Aluminum Association. Demand for semi-fabricated (mill) products totaled 2.543 billion lb for January-February, rising 1.7% from a year ago. Apparent consumption (demand, less exports) in domestic markets totaled an estimated 3.252 billion lb, 2.2% above last year. Exports of aluminum from the US and Canada (excluding cross-border trade) totaled 656 million lb year to date, 2.3% below a year ago, while aluminum imports totaled 711 million lb, down 0.6% from last year. Demand for aluminum semi-fabricated (mill) products in the US and Canada, which is...
Dubai Aluminium will review its leadership in aluminum industry during its participation at the Aluminium Middle East 2013. Established in 1979 to add value to the energy resources of the Emirate, Dubai Aluminium is today the largest primary aluminium producer in the Middle East; and the largest single-site smelter in the world using pre-bake anode technology. A record 1,025,266 tonnes of hot metal was produced in 2012, leading to higher-than-ever production records of cast products (1,053,811 tonnes) and sales volumes (1,052,419 tonnes) in the same year. Furthermore, as a joint venture partner with Mubadala Development Corporation in Emirates Aluminium - the UAE's second smelter development, where EMAL Phase I has operated at full capacity since the end of 2010 - the total volume of...
Gold prices stabilized following earlier sharp declines, keeping the US dollar index in check. Short-covering helped push LME aluminum above USD 1,900/mt. However, a slight rise in the US weekly initial jobless claims, slowing Philadelphia Fed manufacturing in April and unexpected fall in Conference Board’s March leading indicators deprived the upward momentum of LME aluminum. Finally, LME aluminum ended the day up 1.24% at USD 1,915/mt. Latest LME aluminum inventories increased 6,100 mt to 5,194,575 mt. Weak US economic data will discourage longs from entering the market. LME aluminum should struggle at USD 1,900/mt, with prices between USD 1,890-1,920/mt on Friday. SHFE 1306 aluminum contract is expected to open higher at RMB 14,520/mt and move in a RMB 14,470-14,570/mt range. In spot...
Following a two-day decline on the LME, the cash price of primary aluminum climbed up 3.1 percent on Wednesday, April 17. After falling for two days, the 3-month price of aluminum rose 2.7 percent on the LME to $1,892 per metric ton. The Indian aluminum cash price weakened by 1.0 percent, settling at INR 100.10 ($1.85) per kilogram. Chinese aluminum closed mixed yesterday. Following a 0.4 percent rise yesterday, the cash price of Chinese aluminum closed on the up and up. The price of Chinese aluminum billet rose 0.3 percent after a two-day drop. The price of Chinese aluminum scrap showed little movement yesterday. The price of Chinese aluminum bar continues hovering in place for the fifth day in a row.
Aluminium futures for April eased by INR 0.45, or 0.39%, to INR 102.40 per kg in 866 lots. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, the May contract traded lower by INR 0.40, or 0.38%, to INR 103.90 per kg in 74 lots. Prices fell as speculators reduced their positions. Further, subdued domestic spot markets demand also weighed on the metal prices. Downtrend in base metals at the London Metal Exchange on concern that demand from China, the biggest consumer of metals will decline. International Monetary Fund IMF trimmed its forecast for China's 2013 growth to 8% from 8.2% after World Bank cut the forecast to 8.3% on April 15.
March’s bearish tone in base metal markets has carried into April, with generally disappointing ISM reports and a weak US March employment report reinforcing anxiety about the strength of the global and US recoveries. Aluminum prices continued to sag, with the LME cash price now below $1,900/mt for a third week running. This week’s data has been mixed. Chinese lending surged in March, creating some optimism about a hoped for revival in Chinese growth. The latest Chinese inflation data was also relatively benign, which helped dampen fears that policymakers in China will be forced to take immediate steps to restrain growth. (The medium term picture in China is less clear given the unsustainable trajectory of domestic debt.) Markets are also trying to digest the likely effect of the Bank of...
