Europe’s recycled aluminium industry is an important component of the global secondary aluminium supply chain, with Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom (UK) representing key national markets. Production across the European region stood at nearly 6 million tonnes in 2023, supported by established scrap recovery systems, industrial recycling capacity and demand for recycled metal. Russia also contributes to the regional landscape through secondary aluminium production units concentrated in several industrial centres. According to AL Circle’s analysis in its report, “ World Recycled ALuminium Market Analysis Industry Forecast ”, the four countries present different market structures, from Germany’s substantial recycling capacity and Italy’s scrap-based production to the UK’s organised...
According to SMM survey statistics, the operating rate of the secondary aluminium alloy industry in September was 35.0 per cent, up 3.1 percentage points M-o-M but down 6.7 percentage points Y-o-Y. Industry production continued its recovery trend, but the overall operating level remained below the same period last year. On the demand side, September marked the traditional peak consumption season, with downstream orders recovering from August. End-use demand from automobiles and other sectors improved marginally, but the peak season effect has yet to fully materialise. According to CAAM data, automobile production in September was 2.99 million units, up 11.4 per cent M-o-M but down 8.7 per cent Y-o-Y. NEV production was 1.814 million units, up 12.2 per cent Y-o-Y. CAAM noted that China's...
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China's rising output of nonferrous metals through recycling has helped with energy savings and environmental protection, an industrial organization said Friday. The China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association announced that output of the major categories of recycled nonferrous metals hit 5.4 million tons in the first eight months of the year, representing a rise of 3.8 percent year-on-year. Of the sum, recycled copper output stood at 1.7 million tons, the same amount as produced during the same period last year; recycled aluminum output hit 2.8 million tons, up 4 percent year-on-year, while recycled lead output stood at 900,000 tons, up 7 percent, NMIA data showed. Between 2002 and 2011, the production of nonferrous metals through recycling reduced usage of standard coal by 110 million...
The Emirates Environment Group (EEG) collected a total of 805 tonnes of waste and recyclable material in the first half of the current year by conducting a number of clean-up and recycling campaigns, revealed its chairperson Habiba Al Marashi. She explained that active participation in recycling campaigns resulted in collection of a total of 19 tonnes of aluminium cans, 569 tonnes of paper, 44 tonnes of plastic, 159 tonnes of glass, four tonnes of Tetrapak beverage cartons and 10 tonnes of batteries. The organisation regularly conducts recycling campaigns to collect material such as aluminium cans, paper, plastic, glass, tetrapak beverage cartons, batteries, mobile phones and printer toners. Al Marashi urged residents and commercial establishments to participate in the organisation’s...
Alcoa announced that its Alcoa Wheel and Transportation Products (AWTP) business has joined the Sustainable Development Charter of the International Association of Public Transport (UITP). The UITP, an organization with a 125-year history, is an international network for public transport and a global advocate of sustainable mobility and a promoter of innovations in the transportation sector. Alcoa Wheel and Transportation Products President Tim Myers and UITP Secretary-General Alain Flausch signed the UITP Sustainable Development Charter at the 64th International Motor Show (IAA) Commercial Vehicles conference in Hannover, Germany. While Alcoa has been a member of the UITP since 2009, the Sustainable Development Charter is specifically dedicated to increasing awareness of the importance...
Scrap aluminum wheel prices have moved back in line with those on the London Metal Exchange after trading at a premium for much of the year, with one trader claiming that the recent surge on the LME has boosted availability. Free-market transaction prices for wheels are now in the range of 96 to 98 cents per pound, traders said, with one consumer noting that he won’t budge from his quoted price of 95 cents per pound. The LME aluminum cash contract closed the official session at $2,153 per tonne (97.7 cents per pound) Tuesday. Wheels have previously traded at a premium of up to 6 cents per pound to the LME cash price (amm.com, June 26), although traders told AMM Tuesday that sellers have been unsuccessful in pushing for $1 per pound and upward. "That’s their dream number. ... I know one...
Alaska Air Group diverted enough aluminum last year to build three new airplanes, according to the company's first comprehensive corporate sustainability report. Specifically, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air in-flight recycling programs diverted more than 800 tons of waste from landfills, including 230 tons of aluminum and 185 tons of paper, according to a news release. "Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air strive to be good airlines for our customers, good places to work for our employees, a good business for our investors and environmental stewards of our planet," Brad Tilden, Alaska Air Group's president and CEO, said in a statement. "Our 2012 sustainability report comprehensively documents our corporate social responsibility efforts and provides a platform for collaboration and continued...
Bauxite ore is refined into alumina (aluminum oxide), one of the primary feedstocks for aluminum metal. Scrap aluminum supplies 30 percent of America’s aluminum supply. Recycled aluminum cans supply a portion of the scrap used as a raw material. About 26.5 percent of the aluminum used in America goes into packaging. This is the largest use for aluminum, ahead of transportation products, which use 23.7 percent. Aluminum is the second most-used material in new automobiles worldwide. Aluminum packaging is produced in both rigid and foil forms. Rigid aluminum containers are used for beverage and food packaging. Aluminum cans account for all of the beverage can market, but only a small percentage of the food can market. Cans are 76 percent of aluminum packaging by weight. Foil packaging is...
John Gardner, chief sustainability officer for Novelis, talks to azocleantech.com about the increase in aluminium recycling and how recycled aluminium can be used in the beverage and automotive industries. GT: Could you please give a brief overview of Novelis? JG: Novelis is the world’s largest aluminium rolled products company. We’re supplying sheet and coil aluminium for lots of interesting brands and products that we use in our everyday lives. For example, we sell a lot of aluminium into packaging, so your soft drink or beer can is made out of our aluminium! We are also supplying a lot of aluminium to the car industry. Aluminium is very light, strong and highly recyclable. It is very good for the car industry because they are doing their best to reduce greenhouse gases and optimise...
Aluminum scrap consumers are increasingly using secondary grades of feedstock, which has put a floor on secondary scrap prices and diminished overall scrap quality, according to Garey Rittenhouse, vice president of southern nonferrous trading at Mayfield Heights, Ohio-based PSC Metals Inc. Many consumers of mill-grade scrap have been "making headway trying new secondary grades," Rittenhouse told the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries’ Commodities Roundtable Forum in Chicago. Rittenhouse said the trend has been driven largely by technological developments that have opened up new ways to process scrap, as well as a greater willingness to "invest capital in order to access a new sector of the supply chain." This increased flexibility from large consumers and steady export demand is...
Those who recycle their plastics with S.A.V.E. can now bring their aluminum, too. S.A.V.E. board member and treasurer Kent Schlosser said the longstanding plastics drives were created to provide an outlet for dedicated recyclers in Helena with the goal of creating a sustainable model for permanent plastics recycling in the community. The drives are held the second full weekend of odd numbered months. “We strive to provide quality service that is accessible to all,” Schlosser said. September’s plastics drive by S.A.V.E. and community partners will start today and continue through Monday; hours are from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The final collection date of 2012 is Nov. 9 through 12. S.A.V.E. requests that participants separate their plastics and rinse and remove all lids before arriving; if...
The DJSI World is regarded by many as the world's most important sustainability index and an important guide for investors and other stakeholders for assessing companies' non-financial performance. Hydro was named a component of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for 2012-2013 with a slight increase in score from last year. Hydro has been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes every year since the index series were launched in 1999. In 2011, Hydro was included in the European STOXX index, now named DJSI Europe and an element of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes, but not in the DJSI World. The DJSI World index includes the 10 percent best companies in each industry, while the regional DJSI Europe index includes the 20 percent best companies in Europe.
Aluminum scrap buyers are still encountering resistance from scrap dealers in securing material, with many sellers now believed to be waiting for London Metal Exchange prices to move closer to $2,200 per tonne. Buyers have reported over the past few months that many dealers have held on to swathes of scrap material while waiting for rising LME prices to support higher free-market prices. Some had said that they expected to see a substantial increase in activity when the LME three-month aluminum price moved above $2,000 per tonne, with the closing price having languished below that mark since May 31 (amm.com, Aug. 13). However, buyers on the sidelines of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries’ Commodities Roundtable in Chicago this week told AMM that even though the LME recently...
Novelis, the overseas subsidiary of aluminium maker Hindalco, is betting big and moving fast on recycled content. The company is targeting to reach 50% of its production through recycled aluminium material, or scrap, by 2015. This will help the company in taking advantage of the price arbitrage between aluminium and scrap and is in line with the company’s strategy to reach a recycled content capacity of 80%. “Novelis’ investments have been strategically geared to leveraging growth opportunities in the emerging markets, to capture the increasing emphasis on light-weighting in the automobile industry, and recycling in all the four operating regions,” said Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of Hindalco during the company’s 53rd Annual General Meeting on Tuesday. He said for the current year, the...
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has selected rolled aluminium producer, Novelis, as its sole supplier of automotive aluminium sheet products in a multi-year agreement. As part of the company’s sustainable growth strategy, JLR has chosen Novelis to recover all aluminium scrap and create a tight recycling system. The recycled aluminium will be used in the all new Range Rover – the world’s first Sports Utility Vehicle with a lightweight all aluminium body structure. Roland Harings, vice president, global automotive, Novelis said: “Novelis’ ability to deliver a secure supply of aluminium sheet will enable Jaguar Land Rover to meet the growing demand from its customers worldwide for lighter vehicles and improved fuel economy. This close partnership reflects the aligned growth paths of both companies...
Nestlé Nespresso SA, the pioneer and reference of the premium portioned coffee segment, today announced two important developments in its commitment to aluminium sustainability. Firstly the company has reached its 75% capsule recycling capacity objective one year ahead of plan. In addition, Nespresso joined IUCN and other partners in the presentation of the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative at the World Conservation Congress in Jeju, South Korea. "Aluminium as a material is indispensable for guaranteeing the quality of our exceptional coffee. Moreover aluminium is indefinitely recyclable. That is why we make it easy for our consumers to return their used aluminium capsules - either through national schemes or our own collection systems," commented Richard Girardot, CEO of Nestlé Nespresso...
Shaw Recycling in Bauxite was temporarily shut down by local authorities on Monday and owner Bobby Shaw was issued multiple citations for failing to maintain records of scrap metal sales. The incident is part of an effort to deter criminal activities with scrap metal theft, specifically theft of copper, which Benton Police Chief Kirk Lane said has "reached epidemic proportions." "Hopefully what this will do is discourage criminals in the area," Saline County Sheriff Bruce Pennington said. "(Criminals) are tearing up property, whether it's homes under construction, air conditioner units at churches, schools, businesses, wherever they can get copper. It's a large problem. I know Pulaski County had more than a million dollars in copper theft last year and it was very high in Saline County as...
The Global Business and Biodiversity Programme of IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) today presented to its members at the World Conservation Congress, the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) - a unique aluminium value chain initiative that will create the first Responsible Aluminium Standard. IUCN, in its role of co-ordinator, has catalysed this initiative with leadership from fellow founding members Nespresso, Rio Tinto Alcan, AMAG, Amcor Flexibles, Constantia Flexibles, Constellium and Tetra Pak - all industry leaders in their own right. On behalf of all of ASI founders, IUCN, Nespresso and Rio Tinto Alcan presented the ASI and called on organizations producing and using aluminium to join the initiative and help drive performance across the industry. The ethical,...
Aluminum producer Aleris has named Shannon Bennett vice president of communications. Bennett will have responsibility for all internal and external global communications strategy, including brand and reputation management. Shannon was most recently vice president, corporate communications and public affairs at Supervalu Inc., where she led communications strategy, community affairs, and corporate social responsibility. “Shannon's communications leadership experience makes her an important addition to our team,” says Steve Demetriou, Aleris chairman and CEO. “Her proven ability to develop and implement critical communications strategies that support business objectives will be important as our company continues to grow.”
A warehouse worker was injured when he was struck by a fork lift truck carrying aluminium cans. The 43 year old man – who has not been named – was at work for recycling firm Novelis UK Ltd in November 2010. He was walking through a warehouse at the company’s premises in Latchford, Warrington, when the accident happened. The man was struck by a fork lift truck vehicle that was carrying a bale of crushed aluminium cans. He suffered injury, damaging his feet and his ankles in the incident. It was later revealed that the Health and Safety Executive had given the company advice just four months prior to the accident. This advice was in regards to improving the segregation of vehicles and pedestrians at the site in order to improve safety, but was not acted upon by the firm. Segregation in...
