
AL Circle Analysis: Import rise meets demand growth on aluminium extrusion chessboard
Aluminium’s downstream trade network is getting more fragmented as import dependence, changing end-use demand and trade-policy interventions reshape regional markets. From North America and Europe to Asia-Pacific, the aluminium industry is navigating a market where access to supply, competitive...
US industrial policy needs to be systematic, not just ad hoc – Part 2
Our current approach can win economic skirmishes, but not the geopolitical conflict. – Part 2 Impact #5 of ad hoc industrial policy: Failing to use all required tools Industrial policy is often caricatured as just tariffs and subsidies. Mis-framed debates that evaluate the merits of tariffs in...
Grow with
AL Circle

Century Aluminum takes power issue to Kentucky lawmakers
Kentucky state lawmakers are set to decide whether to let US aluminum producer Century Aluminum Co buy power on the open market in its bid to save its money-losing smelter in the Bluegrass state from closure. In its attempt to cope, Century has taken the dramatic step of pushing for legislation...

Century Aluminum Workers Heading to Frankfort
Several Century Aluminum workers are on their way to Frankfort, where they will lobby for a bill that would allow the company to buy energy on the open market. Both Century and Alcan say if they can't get cheaper electric rates from Big Rivers and Kenergy, they may be forced to close. Eyewitness...

Jobs at Century and Alcan at risk without cheaper electricity
In the final days of the 2013 legislative session, lawmakers are wrestling with the possibility that well over 1,000 good jobs in Western Kentucky will be lost as electric bills soar for about 112,000 homes and businesses in the region. Two aluminum smelters that employ 1,200 have said they will...

Talks resume between Century Aluminum and Appalachian Power
Century Aluminum and Appalachian Power Company have restarted talks in connection with a power rate for Century that could lead to the reopening of the company's plant in Ravenswood. Appalachian Power Communications Director Jeri Matheney tells MetroNews regular discussions began a few weeks ago....

HARBOR expects increasing aluminum sourcing challenges in 2013
HARBOR expects the global primary aluminum market to experience in 2013 its seventh consecutive surplus (609,000 tons vs 485,000 tons in 2012 ). China should be effectively a balanced market with a surplus of only 124 ktons, while we expect the Rest of the World (RoW) to experience a surplus of 485...

Aluminum foil paper export to USA, Croatia, and Chili increased
Armenian export of aluminum foil paper thinner than 0,2 mm to USA, Croatia, and Chili increased for 6, 43, and 186 percents respectively. The State Revenue Committee of the Government of the Republic of Armenia informed "Armenpress" about this. Volume of aluminum foil paper export to USA was...

Aluminum Stocks to Watch out for
Bestdamnpennystocks, an investment community with a special focus on updating investors with recent news on the U.S. stock market, issues news alert on the following stocks:- Alcoa Inc decreased 2.55% and closed at $8.42. Alcoa Inc. (Alcoa) is engaged in the production and management of primary...

Century Aluminum retirees will rally at the Capitol Tuesday to thank lawmakers
Retirees from Century Aluminum's Ravenswood plant are grateful, despite the position they've been put in by the company. The retirees plan to gather at the Capitol Feb. 26 to hand-deliver letters of thanks to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin and other lawmakers who passed a bill at the end of the 2012...

Noranda Aluminium to offer senior unsecured notes due 2019
Noranda Aluminum Holding Corporation today announced that Noranda Aluminum Acquisition Corporation, its wholly-owned subsidiary, intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, approximately $225 million of senior unsecured notes due 2019 . The Notes will be fully and unconditionally...

North American aluminum demand up 5.3% in 2012 on year: Aluminum Association
US and Canada aluminum demand (shipments by domestic producers plus imports) totaled an estimated 23.038 billion lb in 2012, 5.3% over 2011, according to figures released Monday by the Aluminum Association. Demand for semi-fabricated (mill) products was up 4.3% to a total of 15.592 billion lb....

Alcoa funds $20 million substation overhaul
US aluminium giant Alcoa has invested $20 million overhauling two electricity sub-stations powering its Wenatchee smelter in Washington State, USA. The overhaul was designed to minimise the risk of a power outage at the plant. The modernised McKenzie and Valhalla substations are owned respectively...

Universal Scrap Metals Adds Recycling Facility in Kentucky
Universal Scrap Metals Inc. (USM) is adding a recycling facility in Georgetown, Ky. The Chicago-based USM said in a news release the company’s investment includes purchasing recycling equipment from Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp. (ABRC). The equipment is used to help prepare used beverage...

Kentucky governor urges Century Aluminum and Big Rivers Corp.to compromise
A dispute between a regional utility and two aluminum smelters in western Kentucky over electric rates is getting an increasing amount of attention from Kentucky state officials. Gov. Steve Beshear sent a letter on Wednesday urging the presidents of Big Rivers Electric Corp. and its largest...

Aluminium shipments in North American off to a slow start in 2013
Metal shipments in 2013 decreased from last January’s levels at small single digit rates in both the United States and Canada. In January, 126,100 tonnes of aluminum products were shipped by US service centers, a decrease of 5.6% from the same month in 2012. Inventories of aluminum products were...

Aleris to shut Roxboro coil-coating plant by May
US aluminum sheet maker Aleris plans to close its Roxboro, North Carolina, coil-coating plant by the end of May, spokesman Jason Saragian said Wednesday. Aleris will continue to service its coil-coating customers from its other coil-coating facilities, specifically its Asheville, Ohio, and...

Kaiser Aluminum dips in the fourth quarter
Foothill Ranch-based Kaiser Aluminum Corp. missed expectations on revenue and profits in the fourth quarter, when it saw dampened demand from the automotive and general engineering sectors. The company's shares were down about 5% in early trading today, to a market value of about $1.18 billion....

Aluminium can market affected by Health-conscious Americans
U.S. aluminium can sales are set to slow in 2013 for a third straight year as more consumers ditch sodas for healthier options such as water and iced teas, traditionally bottled in plastic or glass. The loss of market share in the fizzy drinks capital of the world, also due to loud anti-obesity...

Kaiser Aluminium announces record earnings
California-based Kaiser Aluminum has reported net income of $86 million for the year ended December 31, 2012 compared to $25 million for the ear ended December 31, 2011. Adjusted net income was $74 million for the full year 2012, up 76% compared with $42 million for 2011. Value added revenue was...
