CRU aluminum news roundup

The proposed modifications first announced in May were largely adopted, with several updates strengthening actions to protect American businesses.

“Today’s finalized tariff increases will target the harmful policies and practices of the People’s Republic of China that continue to impact American workers and businesses,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “These actions underscore the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to standing up for American workers and businesses in the face of unfair trade practices.”

In particular, the USTR’s office said that many of the tariffs – including a 100% duty on Chinese EVs, 50% on solar cells, and 25% on steel, aluminum, EV batteries, and key minerals – would take effect on Sept. 27. The determination also showed that a 50% duty on Chinese semiconductors, now including two new categories – silicon wafers and polysilicon used in solar panels – is due to start in 2025.

Nevertheless, the final decision disregarded calls from automakers for lower tariffs on graphite and critical minerals used in EV battery production because they are still dependent on Chinese supplies.

Novelis is taking end-of-life automotive recycling to the next level

In a new blog launched by Novelis VP Global Automotive Development Daniel Kern, the company discusses industry-wide solutions, including innovative scrap sortation and segregation technologies that enable the recovery of specific alloys.

These advancements, combined with new uni-alloy designs and collaboration across the supply chain, offer promising pathways to improve recycling processes and create a more sustainable future for automotive aluminum.

Novelis has been working on this challenge for years. The company has invested in and deployed innovative scrap sortation and segregation operations that “close the loop” by enabling aluminum from end-of-life vehicles to be captured, further realizing the value of recycled content.

The group has also developed new automotive aluminum alloys that accept higher scrap content along with creating single-alloy designs for hoods, doors, and other closures that support design-for-disassembly initiatives. In the document, Novelis calls for all players in the automotive supply chain to come together to make cost-effective recapture of high-value, end-of-life automotive aluminum a reality. The full blog can be accessed here.

Power maintenance hits Century’s output

Century Aluminum could lose around 2,500 tons of output from the Grundartangi smelter in Iceland this quarter. The shortfall is because geothermal energy companies have issued partial power curtailment orders to industrial customers to carry out maintenance work.

On a positive note, the Chicago-headquartered aluminum producer resumed normal shipping operations at the port of Rocky Point, which serves Jamalco in Jamaica. The news comes following the completion of repairs to an alumina conveyor that was partly damaged when Hurricane Beryl passed across the Caribbean in July.

The bauxite mining and alumina operation returned to production within days of the storm and the company secured alternative port arrangements in the interim to ensure continued alumina shipments to customers.

Constellium opens new recycling center

Constellium celebrates the opening of its new recycling center at its facility in Neuf-Brisach, France. The €130 million ($145 million) investment, supported by a grant from the France Relance investment program, will increase the Neuf-Brisach plant’s capacity to recycle automotive and packaging products by up to 75%, adding 130,000 tons.

With the added capacity, the facility also expects to increase the recycled content rate of its products, responding to growing demand for sustainable materials in the automotive and packaging sectors, the company said.

The investment brings Constellium’s global recycling capacity to approximately 735,000 tons per year, contributing to a reduction of roughly 400,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). The move supports the company’s sustainability targets of reducing GHG intensity by 30% by 2030 vs 2021; and increasing recycled input to at least 50% by 2030.

The Neuf-Brisach facility, established in 1967, is one of Constellium’s largest plants with approximately 1,600 employees and a production capacity of 450,000 tons per year. The facility primarily serves the packaging and automotive markets.

Vedanta reports water storage breach

Vedanta reported on Monday that a water storage facility at its Lanjigarh alumina refinery in Odisha state overflowed due to heavy rains and “impacted agricultural areas”. The incident reported by Reuters occurred during the early hours on Sunday, Sept. 15, as extreme weather caused elevated water levels and pressure in the facility’s catchment area.

There were no injuries or loss of livestock due to the flooding caused by the breach, a spokesperson for Vedanta said.

This analysis was first published by CRU. To learn more about CRU’s services, visit www.crugroup.com.