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Aluminium

Aluminium is a lightweight, silvery-white metal and the most abundant metallic element in the Earth's crust, widely used across transport, construction, packaging and electrical applications. The metal is prized for its low density, high strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance and excellent conductivity. Primary aluminium is produced by smelting alumina (refined from bauxite ore) in an energy-intensive electrolytic process, making access to affordable electricity a key competitive factor for smelters. Major producing regions include China, the Middle East, Russia, Canada and Australia, while significant consumption centres span Asia, Europe and North America. The industry is organised around integrated producers that mine bauxite, refine alumina and smelt metal, as well as downstream fabricators that roll, extrude and cast semi-finished products. Benchmark pricing is set on the London Metal Exchange, with regional premiums reflecting freight, supply tightness and trade flows. Aluminium's recyclability without loss of properties underpins a substantial secondary market, reducing the carbon footprint of supply. Demand is driven by lightweighting trends in automotive and aerospace, urbanisation in emerging markets, and the energy transition's need for transmission cable and renewable-energy components. Environmental pressures are prompting smelters to shift toward low-carbon power and adopt inert-anode technologies. The sector faces cyclical swings in capacity utilisation, geopolitical trade restrictions and volatility in energy costs, all of which shape investment and operating decisions.

Aluminium News


South Africa's large Hillside Aluminium in Richards Bay.
South African aluminium assets’ sale to Alcoa on track, South32 reports
6th November 2026 By: Martin Creamer

The sale of South Africa’s aluminium value chain assets to Alcoa Corporation of the US remains on track for completion in the June 2027 half-year, Johannesburg-, Sydney- and London-listed South32... 


Gold nuggets
Venezuela to offer State assets to private sector, Rodriguez says
29th October 2026 By: Reuters

Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez said on Thursday the government has made progress identifying State assets to offer to the private sector and former owners, a move that could reverse... 


Novacium's solid fuel made from recycled aluminium and silicon
Green hydrogen without needing electricity solution selected for French defence funding
28th October 2026 By: Marleny Arnoldi

A consortium led by French productivity solutions company for hydrogen Novacium, together with open innovation chemistry platform Axel'One and gas engineering company AD-VENTA, have secured funding... 


Aluminium smelting
China's aluminium producers push abroad as domestic growth hits ceiling
28th October 2026 By: Reuters

Chinese aluminium producers are pushing abroad as part of an expansion spree that could tip the world market for the metal into surplus even as the wave of investment faces greater scrutiny from... 


Aluminerie Alouette plant
Canadian fed grants $193m to modernise two aluminium smelters
26th October 2026 By: Marleny Arnoldi

With Canada's Industry Minister Mélanie Joly having announced a $193-million investment for the aluminium sector under the Strategic Response Fund last week, federal department Innovation, Science... 


Photo of Martin Creamer
On-The-Air (23/10/2026)
23rd October 2026 By: Martin Creamer

Martin Creamer talks about Rainbow Rare Earths, Alcoa Corporation and Andrada Mining. 


Rainbow Rare Earths, Alcoa Corporation, Andrada Mining make headlines
Rainbow Rare Earths, Alcoa Corporation, Andrada Mining make headlines
23rd October 2026

Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer discusses Rainbow Rare Earths recent lab success; the sale of South Africa’s aluminium value chain assets to Alcoa Corporation; and Andrada Mining's... 


Rio Tinto trucks
Australia's Rio Tinto to invest $1.9bn in Queensland bauxite project
23rd October 2026 By: Reuters

Rio Tinto said on Friday it will invest $1.9-billion to develop the Kangwinan bauxite project in Queensland, Australia, replacing output from its ageing Andoom mine and lifting annual production... 


Norsk Hydro refinery
Norsk Hydro flags higher smelting costs after quarterly profit miss
23rd October 2026 By: Reuters

Norwegian aluminium producer Norsk Hydro on Friday reported a third-quarter core profit below market expectations and said it expected higher costs and lower realised metal prices at its smelting... 


South Africa's large Hillside Aluminium in Richards Bay.
South African aluminium assets' sale to Alcoa on track, South32 reports
19th October 2026 By: Martin Creamer

The sale of South Africa’s aluminium value chain assets to Alcoa Corporation of the US remains on track for completion in the June 2027 half-year, Johannesburg-, Sydney- and London-listed South32... 


Aluminium plant in China
China aluminium output hits record quarterly high despite capacity cap
19th October 2026 By: Reuters

China's primary aluminium production hit a record quarterly high in July to September, official data showed on Monday, as smelters maintained high operating rates despite a longstanding... 


ferrochrome smelting
Africa's minerals value-add drive interests investors but faces energy hurdle
19th October 2026 By: Reuters

As African nations push miners to build refineries and smelters at home, government and industry officials say a major obstacle risks crimping investment: a shortage of cheap, reliable electricity.... 


Aluminium cans
Aluminium heads for surplus in 2027 as supply shock fades
16th October 2026 By: Reuters

Aluminium is expected to swing into a surplus in 2027, potentially of more than one-million metric tons, as analysts eye a wave of new supply from Indonesia and a recovery in flows from Gulf... 


Alcoa's Deschambault smelter in Québec
Alcoa posts net income, free cashflow gains in Q3
16th October 2026 By: Marleny Arnoldi

NYSE- and ASX-listed bauxite, alumina and aluminium producer Alcoa Corporation has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.10 apiece for the third quarter of the year, which marked a period of... 


Rio Tinto Bell Bay aluminium
Aluminium's calm belies lingering supply-chain stress, Reuters column says
14th October 2026 By: Reuters

Iranian missile attacks on Gulf smelters and the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz have knocked out almost 3-million metric tons of aluminium production capacity. Yet, eight months on, the market is... 


An image of tin ore
Industrial metals post mixed third-quarter performance, downside risks persist
9th October 2026 By: Tasneem Bulbulia

Industrial metals have come under broad pressure in recent weeks, falling 3.3% month-on-month as of October 7, as expectations of a more hawkish US Federal Reserve weighed on sentiment across the... 


Aluminium bars
Investment firm Heeney celebrates return of aluminium shipments from Venezuela to US
6th October 2026 By: Marleny Arnoldi

US investment firm Heeney Capital has celebrated the arrival and unloading of the first shipment of primary aluminium to the US from Venezuela in nearly a decade. The 15 000-t shipment arrived at... 


AVEVA's Glenn Kerkhoff and Metlen Energy & Metals' Grigorios Paschalis discuss how companies can move beyond isolated automation projects towards more connected and increasingly intelligent operations
Mining’s shift from automation to intelligent operations
2nd October 2026 By: Shannon de Ryhove

The mining, metals and minerals industries are under increasing pressure to extract greater value from existing assets, with data, AI and connected operations emerging as important tools for... 


Alumina loading for transport
Hindalco aims to kick-start an alumina pricing revolution, columnist says
2nd October 2026 By: Reuters

The market for the raw material needed to produce aluminium is both huge and highly opaque despite the best efforts of both exchanges and price reporting agencies. The London Metal Exchange (LME)... 


An image of people sorting through aerosol cans for potential reprocessing
Metal packaging closes loop on circularity
2nd October 2026

As packaging manufacturers, brand owners and retailers continue to focus on labelling, traceability, product identification and increasingly sophisticated barcoding technologies, the substrate on... 


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pqt: 0.128s - ct: 0.178s - 275pq - 2rq
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