Coal-heavy Australian aluminium vs renewables-led New Zealand: How Oceania is balancing decarbonisation
Oceania’s primary aluminium industry is facing a fragmented energy transition. While Australia, the leading aluminium producer of the continent, has abundant renewable resources and a well-established aluminium value chain, its smelters remain significantly more dependent on fossil-fuel-based...
Can the US afford to cut Canada off? 75% aluminium and $100b energy tell the story
The US aluminium industry’s dependence on Canada extends far beyond primary aluminium imports. While Canada supplies around 75 per cent of US imported primary aluminium, covering roughly 60 per cent of the country’s annual aluminium usage, it is also a major supplier of crude oil, natural gas and...
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Rising energy prices lift LME aluminium benchmark price by US$52.5/t; SHFE price climbs up by US$5/t
LME aluminium opened at US$2,430 per tonne last Friday and closed at US$2,490 per tonne, an increase of US$54.5 per tonne or 2.24 per cent. Rising energy prices are affecting the aluminium industry more than ever. As a result, aluminium smelter production costs are also on the rise, which in turn...
Primary aluminium weekly recap: Speira’s German aluminium smelter plans to reduce production by 50% as energy cost bites; European aluminium smelters being victim to energy price surge
This week the global primary aluminium segment witnessed a lot of essential changes. European aluminium smelters have once more increased their output cutbacks. According to Citi analysts, the 4.5 million tonnes of total aluminium production capacity in Europe have decreased by 1 million tonnes...
Production vs Reduction: European aluminium smelters being victim to energy price surge
European aluminium smelters have once again ramped up their production cuts owing to soaring electricity prices. Since 2021, 1 million tonnes of total 4.5 million tonnes of Europe’s aluminium production capacity has been reduced, while another 500,000 tonnes is under threat, according to Citi...
Exorbitant energy prices cause 20% primary aluminium production cut at Talum
Talum, the major Slovenian company specializing in alumina and aluminium products, has reduced its primary aluminium production by 20 per cent of its smelting capacity due to exorbitant energy prices. Power prices in Europe have been rising since the beginning of 2021, making some production sites...
Speira’s German aluminium smelter plans to reduce production by 50% as energy cost bites
Rising energy prices are affecting the aluminium industry more than ever. As a result, Speira, a significant European aluminium rolling firm, is thinking of reducing the production of its German aluminium smelter to 50 per cent of the total capacity. The final decision on the production cut is...
Federal Government’s new bill seems to be a saviour for Alcoa Intalco aluminum smelter
Alcoa Intalco aluminum smelter sees a silver lining once again to restart its operation, as the climate and health care bill has been passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden with provisions that could help the resumption of the smelter’s operation. Already the reopening campaign for...
Window Glass Company Ltd wishes to find new buyer for aluminium windows business
The Window Glass Company Ltd., hailing from Bristol, supplies self-designed and manufactured windows, consisting of curtain walls and aluminium window solutions. Recently, the firm has been searching for a capable buyer to take over the organisation's operations. The enterprise now has generated...
Primary aluminium weekly recap: Sichuan power crisis reduces aluminium capacity by 395,000 tonnes; Fourth integrated aluminium industry may emerge in India
The global primary aluminium segment witnessed some important events this week. To begin with, by the end of September 2022, Slovalco Aluminium will shut down its primary aluminium manufacturing line. The Adani Group, backed by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, revealed a $5 billion investment plan...
Sichuan power crisis sparks widespread blackout; Aluminium capacity falls by 395,000 tonnes
Sichuan province in China is facing severe power shortages brought on by the ongoing heat waves. As a result, 19 cities in Sichuan province (except Panzhihua and Liangshan) had their power cuts from August 15 and are expected to continue till August 20 to ensure that residents have a sufficient...
Record domestic aluminium production in China led to a fall in July imports
In July 2022, China’s unwrought aluminium and aluminium products imports, including alloys, plunged by 38.3 per cent year-on-year to stand at 192,581 tonnes, showed the General Administration of Customs on Thursday, August 18. This shrink in imports could be attributed to the domestic production...
Tomago Aluminium under govt. lens for industrial pollution
The Hunter region in Australia is one of New South Wales' most popular destinations, where the aluminium smelting industry is under scrutiny as part of a Government's effort to cut greenhouse gases. The nation's largest Tomago Aluminium Smelter consumes around 11 per cent of the total energy...
Rule change by Electricity Authority disallows the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter to renew 150MW power contract
After a surprise evaluation of the New Zealand power market, the Electricity Authority has decided to restrict power companies from signing large power deals with customers unless certain conditions are met. This is applicable to energy supply contracts of more than 150 megawatts, meaning power...
GMG plans Phase 1 expansion of graphene manufacturing facility to yield G+Al batteries
Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd. (GMG) has announced with extreme pride that the company has put together a Final Investment Decision (FID) of AU$1.5 million approx. to expand Phase 1 of its graphene manufacturing project. The expansion plan consists of a consolidated lease of 5 years to extend...
Hydro to shut down primary aluminium production in Slovakia, recycling operations to continue
Slovalco Aluminium, Slovakia’s only aluminium producer, is about to terminate its primary aluminium production line by the end of September 2022. Hydro owns majority stakes at the aluminium plant and has declared that the regular recycling operations will continue. The head of Hydro’s primary...
Nusantara’s development to encourage better trade aiding smelters and East Malaysian ports
Nusantara is set to replace Jakarta as the capital of Indonesia, and an analyst panel has discovered that there are many potential clientele bases around Malaysian states, Sabah and Sarawak. The research arm of Kenenga Investment Bank Bhd (Kenenga Research) stated that these two states are...
Chinese factories lowering operations to meet residential energy demands for heat wave
The Sichuan Province in China, also known as the lithium hub, will curtail the electricity supply to factories until August 20, as was reported by the state media. Extreme heat waves have been urging more people to use a lot of energy, gradually drying up the reservoirs. Usually, huge enterprises...
Wind farms might keep the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter operational after 2024
Mike Fuge, the CEO of Contact Energy, New Zealand's largest electricity provider, predicts that Rio Tinto's Tiwai Point aluminium smelter might remain open beyond 2024 with investments in wind farms on the lower South Island. The wind energy resource at the country's South Island is presently...
Alcomet registers management buy-out worth US$2 million assisted by Barclays
There have been reports of a management buyout costing US$2 million in Alcomet, the UK's component provider to the electricity transmission and distribution market. The founder of Alcomet, Gary James, hosted the session while declaring his separation from the brand. Chris Beasley, the managing...
