As the global aluminium supply chain continues to swing between shifts and crunches, how has Europe fared on the production front in the 2026 year-to-date calendar? Substantially well, going by the output figures. Between January and September 2026, the European continent, including Russia, has produced a total of 5.56 million tonnes of primary aluminium, building a significant year-on-year growth chart. The nine-month growth chart Set against the same period of 2025, the first nine months of 2026 show a clear lift in output. From January to September 2026, Europe, including Russia, produced 5.56 million tonnes of primary aluminium, raising the annual growth rate by 5.69 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) over the 5.26 million tonnes produced in 2025. Explore the production, demand and...
The proposed $4 billion Oklahoma Primary Aluminum (OPA) smelter, a joint venture between Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) and Century Aluminum, is targeting civil works in the second quarter of 2027, with first hot metal expected between mid- and late 2030. Realization of the 750,000-metric-ton project would render it the first new US primary aluminum smelter in nearly 50 years. However, local restrictions, environmental permitting and ongoing legal hurdles clouded its path towards maintaining the construction timeline. A local moratorium and an April 7 ballot sit on the same calendar. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: “ Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook ” A...
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The intelligent control R&D team at the Zhengzhou Research Institute of Chinalco has successfully developed and implemented a Remote Centralised Control System for cranes in raw material warehouses, which has passed enterprise-level acceptance with high praise from experts. Addressing challenges such as inefficiencies in material handling and mixing, harsh working conditions, and limited automation, the team upgraded the crane's mechanical and electrical control systems. The system is seamlessly integrated with the petroleum coke precise batching metering control system, independently developed by the R&D team. This integration enables the crane to grab materials automatically, facilitates intelligent raw material mixing, and ensures accurate, unmanned batching operations. The system...
Donald Trump returning to the White House as the 47th President of the United States after winning the 2024 election against Kamala Harris is already raising speculations about global trade policies and economic measures for the ensuing time. This especially comes after his protectionist regime as the 45th President of the United States from 2017 to 2021, which saw heavy import duties as part of the "America First" economic policy. Image Source: Facebook (Handle - Donald J. Trump The Trump presidency during 2017-2021 imposed waves of tariffs on products like solar panels, washing machines, and consumer goods. Even steel and aluminium were not spared from the heavy import duties. Countries like China, Mexico, Canada, and the European Union, the big players in the world aluminium market,...
Defying predictions of a close race or a delay of days or weeks for the final numbers, Donald Trump has emerged with enough Electoral College votes to take back the job he held 4 years earlier. His victory speech at 2 in the morning offered little in the way of clues, but as most pundits have explained, there's no evidence that he won't be exactly the same man he was in his first stint. So it's still too early to say, but if the economy and border security are his first two priorities, then the third will be his call to slap tariffs on foreign countries who trade with the USA. Apart from perhaps Canada, almost no country shouldn't feel a little worried about their exports to America. And up there, at the top of the list, is China. However, China is also near the top of Trump's laundry...
The year-on-year decline in the United States imports of aluminium crude metal and alloys for consumption, alongside the increase in domestic scrap generation and restrained export volume, indicates the country's intentional shift in focus from primary to secondary aluminium applications. From January to July 2024, the United States imported 2.14 million tonnes of aluminium crude metal and alloys, down by 7.76 per cent Y-o-Y from 2.32 million tonnes. Each month through July 2024 witnessed Y-o-Y fall. In July, the United States aluminium crude metal and alloy imports amounted to 293,000 tonnes, significantly down by 11.48 per cent Y-o-Y from 331,000 tonnes and 13.82 per cent less than 340,000 tonnes a month ago. Among the sources, Canada was the highest supplier of aluminium crude metal...
Contradictory to August 2024's decision of cancelling the auction, State Property Fund has scheduled a repeated auction for the state-owned stakes of ZaporozhyeIndustrial Aluminium Plant JSC, a company in Ukraine that was known as the producer of aluminium bars and cylindrical ingots. Image Source: Wikimapia As per a regional media correspondent's report, the Ukrainian State Property Fund revealed the statement on social media. "On November 7, 2024, an online auction is expected to be held for the privatisation of the state-owned block of shares in the amount of 97.5458 per cent in the authorised capital of Zaporozhye Industrial Aluminium Plant JSC, totalling 607,446,012 shares," the report states. The enterprise, at the moment, is known to include 18 state-owned objects which were not...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), the world’s largest aluminium smelter ex-China, is reportedly thinking otherwise about its capacity expansion plans. Instead of proceeding with the plan of building a new Line 7, the company is considering installing new production facilities to replace the existing Lines 1, 2 and 3. Image Source: Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) The news came after Alba C.E.O. Ali Al-Baqali said on the sidelines of the Gateway Gulf Forum, “Now the intention is to demolish or stop the old lines, which are efficient from 1971. They are more than 50 years-plus, and we will replace them with new lines. Technically, this is not a new Line 7 project anymore because we are going to close Lines 1, 2 and 3.” Sharing the essential details, Ali Al-Baqali also said the feasibility...
On October 11th, Dongxing Aluminum Company achieved a significant milestone as 20,000 tonnes of its electrolytic primary aluminium liquid received certification from the Green Product Evaluation Centre of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association. With this certification, Dongxing Aluminum's product officially earned the designation of "Green Aluminum," marking a major step forward in its commitment to sustainable practices in aluminium production. In December 2022, the China Nonferrous Metals Green Product Evaluation Centre introduced a new concept of "green aluminium" in its group standard, Guidelines for Evaluation and Trading of Green Aluminum. This initiative aligns with the aluminium industry's low-carbon development strategy and responds to current market demands. According...
The Americas primary aluminium production in the third quarter of 2024 maintained a steady trend, reaching 1.375 million tonnes compared to 1.372 million tonnes in Q2 2024, despite monthly output drop in August and September, particularly in North America. Image Source: Rio Tinto's Kitimat Smelter Over the past two months, North America's primary aluminium production decreased M-o-M, deriving 333,000 tonnes in August and 324,000 tonnes in September. The decline in August output was relatively marginal compared to 334,000 tonnes in July, but the decrease in September intensified, marking a 2.7 per cent fall. The declining rate in North America's primary aluminium production during Q3 was akin to a 2 per cent drop in Rio Tinto's aluminium output , primarily contributed by Kitimat smelter,...
Century Aluminum Company, a US-based producer of primary aluminium, announced its third-quarter 2024 results, revealing net sales of $539.1 million. That was down by 3.9 per cent sequentially from $560.8 million, attributed to decreased third-party alumina sales but partially offset by increased aluminium shipments, higher aluminium prices on LME, and value-added product premiums. Image Source: Century Aluminum Company Century reported that its Q3 2024 shipments were 168,755 tonnes, up by 847 tonnes from 167,908 tonnes in Q2 2024. In contrast to declining net sales, net income attributable to Century stakeholders surged Q-o-Q from $2.5 million to $47.3 million. The company’s adjusted earnings per share also soared from $0.01 in Q2 2024 to $0.63 in Q3 2024, driven by the recognition of...
Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the world's largest single-site aluminium smelter, has entered into a strategic partnership with Bahrain-based ARRAY Innovation, a leader in AI and digital cloud solutions. The partnership, formalised at the Gateway Gulf Investment Forum's second edition, focuses on advancing Alba's digital transformation journey under the Industry 4.0 framework. Alaa Saeed, ARRAY Innovation Founder and CEO, said, "We're excited to partner with Alba on their Industry 4.0 initiatives, leveraging the depth of ARRAY's Quantitative Development and software engineering expertise to provide Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Data Analytics solutions. Array is on a mission to build advanced enterprise software, analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning...
On October 31, five armed men stormed into a Uchi Mangli village (Punjab, India) based factory and stole over 18 quintals of aluminium and copper. The factory's security guard was held hostage during the unfortunate incident and, after the goons left, informed the owner, who then informed the local law enforcement authority. Image Source: Pixabay Of the total stolen material, the missing items in the factory synchronise with 12 quintals of copper and 6 quintals of aluminium. A case was filed against five unidentified accused after factory owner Munish Kumar Bansal, a resident of Sher-e-Punjab colony, Barewal road, Ludhiana, Punjab, India, lodged an official complaint. The complaint reveals detailed information that on Thursday, Munish received a call from his factory's security guard,...
In a momentous farewell, National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO), India's premier mining and metals powerhouse, announced the retirement of its distinguished Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Shri Sridhar Patra, effective October 31, 2024. Sridhar Patra, a stalwart in the industry, steps down after years of dedicated service, having driven NALCO's exceptional growth and leaving a legacy that will resonate across the company and beyond. Under Shri Patra's transformative leadership, NALCO reached new heights, achieving robust growth and championing mining and metal production sustainability. Known for his strategic vision and commitment to excellence, he steered the company through an era of unprecedented progress, securing NALCO's position as a beacon in the global aluminium sector. His...
AL Circle recently had the privilege of attending the presentation of Mr Uday Patel, Senior Research Manager for Metals and Mining – Aluminium, Wood Mackenzie, at the ICSOBA 2024 conference in Lyon, France. This enlightening session provided valuable insights into the current challenges facing the aluminium industry, as well as the potential outlook that could reshape its future. His expertise provided a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic landscape, highlighting the critical factors influencing market trends and the implications for stakeholders across the industry. This write-up is derived from the macroeconomic outlook based on Wood Mackenzie’s Q3 analysis, which Mr Uday Patel shared during his presentation. As the global economy begins to recover from the shocks of recent...
Chinese anode producer Sunstone was pleased to win a major order from US Aluminum company Alcoa and was so pleased that the story was released in Chinese media. I saw this photo and the accompanying story in Yicai. The story confirms that the contract is for 240,000 tonnes of anodes for the buyer's Canadian and Spanish plants. That's more than 500,000 tonnes of metal based on normal yields. Hang on, I thought the San Ciprian smelter was closed. Alcoa always said they would try to bring the plant back onstream, and recent headlines indicate they are not far away from signing a major energy supply contract with a provider in that country. It was Europe's energy shock following the Russia-Ukraine geo-political crisis that forced the plant to close. So an anode supply contract with Sunstone...
China's largest aluminum producer Aluminium Corporation of China Limited, popurlarly known as Chalco, has released its third quarter’s fiscal results, posting a 3.3 per cent year-on-year rise in net profit to RMB 2 billion (US$280.4 million). During the period under review, Chalco’s revenue also increased by 16 per cent year-on-year to RMB 63.06 billion, equivalent to US$8 billion. However, the company’s profits after excluding extraordinary gains and losses were 9.1 per cent lower than during the corresponding period of the previous year, attributed to higher alumina prices, adjustments in aluminium smelting assets, and adjustment related to power surcharge. Chalco’s total net profit in the first nine months of 2024 amounted to RMB 9.02 billion (US$1.27 billion), up by 68 per cent Y-o-Y...
Alcoa, an American industrial corporation and the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminium, has reportedly expressed its optimistic outlook on the usage of aluminium to be driven by power grids, energy storage, and solar panels development to support energy transition to renewable energy. Image Source: Alcoa Corporation Reiterating the vision, Alcoa's CEO William (Bill) F. Oplinger states that aluminium is a ready substitute for copper. He asserted: "Alcoa very bullish" on aluminium as the energy transition drives demand growth, including substitution away from copper." At a conference in Sydney, William (Bill) F. Oplinger said that demand for copper would surpass the production volume, giving space to aluminium to intrude and substitute copper in some applications. "Megatrends are...
The Aluminium Association of India (AAI) has proposed raising import duties and outlined an investment plan of ₹3 lakh crore to accelerate growth in the aluminium sector as part of its pre-budget recommendations to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce. Image Source - ET Energy world Increased import duties AAI emphasised aluminium's strategic role in India's economic development, citing its wide applications across defence, aerospace, renewable energy, and electric vehicles. AAI has recommended increasing the import duty on primary and downstream aluminium products from 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent and setting a 7.5 per cent duty on aluminium scrap. "This would curb cheap imports, encourage domestic recycling, and boost the...
The traditional "September peak season" revitalised demand for China's primary aluminium billets and boosted their operating performance, leading to a new high production volume for the year and historically. Despite fewer operating days in September compared to August, the domestic primary aluminium billet production increased, driven by the resumption of previously closed production facilities and the commencement of new projects, especially in Xinjiang. According to the Shanghai Metals Market survey, the daily average output of China's primary aluminium billets in September 2024 grew by 2,000 tonnes month-on-month to around 51,000 tonnes per day, bringing the total monthly production to 1.528 million tonnes, up by 15,000 tonnes from August (31 days), utilising 31.205 million tonnes of...
