Anglo-Australian mining giant, Rio Tinto Group, recently released its production results for the second quarter of 2023, showing both positive and negative trends in its operations. The company faced challenges in bauxite ore production due to rainy weather, while it experienced growth in aluminium smelting activities as capacity ramped up. In the second quarter, Rio...
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The Russian state corporation Rosatom has made a splash in Latin America: its subsidiary Uranium One has signed a framework agreement with Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos to establish a complex for mining lithium salts and processing them into lithium carbonate in Bolivia. Rosatom’s attention to lithium is not accidental and implies far-reaching goals. The salt...
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The London Metal Exchange (LME) is witnessing a renewed scramble for copper as its warehouse stocks continue to dwindle rapidly. Over the past three weeks, LME copper stocks have declined from 100,100 tonnes to 77,050 tonnes, despite receiving almost 30,000 tonnes of new arrivals. However, the incoming copper is being quickly turned around and shipped...
READ MOREThe International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recommended that the Indonesian government gradually eliminate its policy of imposing export bans on minerals. The IMF’s latest country report for Indonesia, released on Monday, emphasizes the need for a thorough analysis of costs and benefits before implementing such policies. It further suggests that export restrictions should not be...
READ MOREResearchers at Tohoku University have achieved a significant breakthrough in shape memory alloys (SMAs) by developing a palladium-based metamagnetic shape memory alloy (MMSMA) with reduced energy loss. SMAs are materials that can return to their original shape after being heated or cooled, but their response rate is limited by the need for heating or cooling....
READ MOREResearchers from the University of Ulm and the University of Freiburg have developed a positive electrode material for aluminium-ion batteries using an organic redox polymer based on phenothiazine. The material has demonstrated a storage capacity of 167 milliampere hours per gram (mAh/g) in experiments, surpassing the capacity of graphite, which is commonly used in batteries....
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Rio Tinto, a global mining group, has announced a $1.1 billion investment to expand its AP60 aluminium smelter at Complexe Jonquière in Quebec, Canada. The expansion project will receive an additional $113 million in financial support from the Quebec government. This investment will enable Rio Tinto to increase its production of aluminium for various industries,...
READ MOREThe global nickel supply is expected to face a larger surplus this year as more Indonesian smelters, catering to the electric vehicle (EV) battery and stainless steel industries, come online. This surplus threatens to keep nickel prices below the record highs witnessed in 2022. In the previous year, nickel prices reached unprecedented levels due to...
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In San Miguel de Colorado, a poverty-stricken hamlet in northern Argentina, lies a vast reserve of lithium, a crucial mineral for the global transition to a green economy. International mining companies are eager to exploit this resource, but the predominantly Indigenous residents, who are among the poorest in the country, are concerned about the potential...
READ MOREThe situation in South Korea is interesting: South Korean battery manufacturers could be facing a shortage of copper. Specifically, there could be a shortage of foil made from the red metal as a result of its limited supply on the global market. Not surprisingly, copper foil is essential for the anodes of lithium-ion batteries used...
READ MOREThe London Metal Exchange (LME) and Qianhai Mercantile Exchange (OME) are jointly developing three new contracts. One will be for lithium carbonate, one for nickel sulphate and one for cobalt. They will be traded on OME, and transactions will be made in renminbi. And there are some interesting points here. The choice of lithium carbonate,...
READ MOREThe world platinum market is expected to swing to a big deficit this year, close to 1 million troy ounces. Here is why this is happening and what implications this may have for the sister metal palladium. World Platinum Investment Council forecasts a platinum deficit of 983,000 troy ounces this year, according to the latest...
READ MOREOf the ten biggest underground mines in the Former Soviet Union by the amount of raw ores extracted, six are producing coal and the remaining four copper, the Mining Technology said, citing GlobalData’s mining database. The largest mine is the DTEK Pavlogradugol Mining Complex in Ukraine’s Dnipro (Dnepropetrovsk), owned by DTEK Energy. The mine, due...
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The raised funds will be used by Group 6 Metals to start operations at the Dolphin tungsten mine in Tasmania. Australian miner Group 6 Metals has unveiled plans to raise A$30m through a share placement and share purchase plan (SPP) to begin operations at its Dolphin tungsten mine on King Island, Tasmania. It secured commitments...
READ MOREEmpty factories and warehouses haunt and remind small communities daily of Pennsylvania’s past contributions. Now, a global company hopes to bring back some of that economic vitality to Williamsport. On Wednesday, Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority (PIDA) approved a $3 million loan for Chance Aluminum Corporation in Williamsport. Chance Aluminum, branch of AA Metals is expected...
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The International Copper Study Group made a curious forecast: according to it, production of copper on the planet in the current year will increase by 2.6% to 26.317 million tons, its consumption will grow by 1.4% to 26.431 million tons. Thus, by the end of 2023, the global market is expected to be short of...
READ MOREThe Russian company Rusal plans to build a plant for the production of car wheels in Uzbekistan, Vladislav Vasilyev, director of the department of metallurgy and materials of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, said at a panel session of the Innoprom. Central Asia in Tashkent. According to Vasiliev, Rusal Group...
READ MOREThe global palladium market is at a turning point: it’s becoming cheaper, but there are also conditions that point to a possible increase in its price. The structure of palladium consumption is changing, preparing the market for a significant transformation. Unnecessary negativity The price of palladium is dropping, which is making investors nervous. In January...
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A new package of sanctions adopted by the Japanese government against Russia is due to come into force on 7 April. The measures it envisages include, among other things, a ban on aluminium shipments. To all appearances, the Japanese government expects it to deal a devastating blow to consumption of the winged metal in Russia....
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Russian aluminium tycoon Oleg Deripaska was cleared of contempt of court by London’s High Court on Wednesday in a long-running legal battle with his former business partner. The founder of aluminium giant Rusal (RUAL.MM) was alleged to have breached an undertaking to the court in a lawsuit brought by former Russian finance minister Vladimir Chernukhin...
READ MOREMMK Metalurji, part of MMK Group, has resumed operation of its hot rolling production complex. The plant was forced to suspend operations for several months due to the earthquakes in southeast Turkey and unfavourable economic conditions. The plant’s specialists launched an electric steelmaking shop with a casting and rolling module at the Dörtyol production site...
READ MORELithium de France has successfully completed its latest funding round, raising EUR 44 million after equity was allotted to institutional buyers including Arverne Group, Equinor Ventures and Hydro. It is worth nothing that Arverne Group, the main investor in Lithium de France, implements geothermal projects in France, Equinor Ventures is a subsidiary of Norwegian oil...
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US-based Steel Dynamics has begun construction on a flat-rolled aluminium plant in Mississippi. The project cost is estimated at USD 2.2 billion, with operations expected to get underway in Q1 2025. The site will have an output of 650,000 tons of low-carbon aluminium sheets per year. The move has been received as an extraordinary event...
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Forecasts for 2023 – full infographics available here. Aluminium: For the aluminium sector, 2022 was a year defined by pessimism. The price of natural gas, coal and electricity in Europe, North America and Asia was relatively high and refused to come down. The European Union in particular suffered as a result, so it was no...
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