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The €40m aid package for 2009 could
be paid out to firms in around two
months. Details of how the aid will be
paid out were being worked out by
Germany’s Economy Ministry, and
the plan would have to be approved
by the EU Commission.
German metals producers faced
electricity costs as much as 30% higher
than neighbouring countries.
Greenland delays
decision on alcoa plant
Greenland has delayed a decision on
joining Alcoa Inc. in a planned aluminium
venture, and has scaled back its
possible stake to 10 to 30%. More time
was needed to estimate construction
costs at the smelter and hydropower
venture in Maniitsoq. Greenland’s
parliament will decide on the venture
in spring 2010 instead of this autumn
as earlier planned. Alcoa and Greenland
announced in 2007 they would
explore building a plant and said construction
could begin in 2010, with
production starting in 2014. The proposal
consists of a smelter with a capacity
of at least 350,000 tpy and two
hydropower plants. Annual revenue
is estimated at 3 to 4 billion Danish
crowns (USD566-754.7m). Since Alcoa
is only looking for a 50% share, the
door could be open to other partners.
Vedanta to double output
at orissa aluminium smelter
Vedanta Aluminium will double production
at its new smelter at Jharsuguda,
Orissa, to 500,000 tpy in the near
future. The smelter will get alumina
from Vedanta’s Lanjigarh refinery,
which is also ramping up production,
to 1.4m tpy in the next month
from 1m tpy. Vedanta’s aluminium
smelting capacity in India has, however,
fallen as it has decommissioned
two 50,000 tpy potlines at its plant in
Korba, Chhattisgarh state. Vedanta is
also likely to decommission another
50,000 tpy of old smelting capacity at
Korba within a year, leaving a 245,000
tpy smelter commissioned only a few
years ago. Vedanta plans to replace
the old smelters under a 600,000 tpy
brownfield expansion plan. It aims to
produce over 1m tpy of aluminium by
2010/11.The 600,000 tpy fresh smelting
capacity at Korba is expected to be
commissioned by 2010/11.
Venezuela will announce
aluminium recovery plan
in the near future
The priority of Venezuela’s government
will be to invest some 410m
Bolivares (USD190m) in local bauxite
and alumina producer CVG Bauxilum.
Bauxilum has been producing only
3,200 to 3,500 tpd of alumina, while
its capacity is 5,800 tpd (2.11m tpy).
Alcasa’s situation is also very difficult,
since almost 400 of its 680 electrolytic
cells are idle at the moment on the lack
of technological update. Alcasa has
been producing only some 350 tpd
(126,000 tpy) of aluminium, well below
its installed capability of around 550
tpd (200,000 tpy). Venalum has been
operating near its installed capacity
of 1,180 tpd (430,000 tpy), although
there were some output losses due to
protests. The whole aluminium sector
would need some USD5.5bn to fully
recover, according to a study recently
completed by the Chinese government
at the request of Venezuela’s authorities.
Production costs in Venezuela
are around USD3,700 per tonne of
aluminium, while prices were still in
the USD1,800/t level. The government
will pay delayed benefits and wages to
the sector’s workers, totalling roughly
213m Bolivares in three instalments
– one on 31 July, the second on 15 September
and the last on 31 October.
Century to restart
construction at iceland smelter
Despite lingering concerns about
oversupply in the aluminium market,
Century Aluminum Co. is preparing
to restart major construction at and
expand the capacity of its proposed
primary smelter in Iceland. Plans for
the smelter in Helguvik, Iceland, were
effectively put on hold late in 2008
due to tightening credit markets, the
collapse of the Icelandic economy,
and the downturn within the alumin-
ium industry. Century is now ramping
up construction and is planning
to expand the eventual capacity of
the smelter to 360,000 tpy from its
previous target of 250,000 tpy. Century
has reconfigured the phasing of
the project. Originally, the company
hoped to build a 250,000 tpy smelter
in two stages, with the first 150,000
tpy first stage going online in late
2010.
Now Century plans building the
smelter in four phases of 90,000 tpy
each. The company did not disclose
when the first phase might be completed.
Century is still formulating
how much it plans on spending on
construction costs in 2009. When
built, Helguvik will be Century’s
second plant in Iceland. Its low-cost
Grundartangi smelter shipped at a
rate of approx. 276,000 tpy during the
second quarter.
Century recalls 28 workers
to Hawesville smelter
Century Aluminum Co. has brought
back 28 workers to its Hawesville/
Kentucky smelter as the company
plans to restart 21 pots that have been
left idled or damaged. Seven workers
will replace retiring employees, while
the remaining 21 will be tasked with
rebooting the pots that were allowed
to go out. While the repairs will not
directly lead to increased production,
they will allow the facility to operate
more efficiently. The Hawesville
smelter has a nameplate capacity of
244,000 tpy over five potlines, each
with 112 pots. But the company is
only running four potlines currently,
equating to an annualized production
rate of 180,000 tpy. The rationale for
bring back the employees is twofold.
First, LME prices are in the midst of a
rally. Three-month aluminium closed
second-ring trade at USD1,837 per
tonne on 28 July, a 17.3% gain from
the USD1,565 level seen on 13 July,
based largely on improved demand
and a tightening marketplace. Additionally,
the company just completed
a new long-term power contract with
Big Rivers Electric Corp., which will
supply the smelter with electricity
through 2023. ■
46 ALUMINIUM · 9/2009