News

Adrian Bailey MP, who represents the West Bromwich West constituency, was elected at a meeting of the Group on 19 October. The vacancy as Chair arose because David Mowat MP, the previous Chair of the Group, has been appointed the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Community Health and Care, which means he is no longer able to serve as an officer of an APPG. Aluminium Federation President Adrian Platt warmly welcomed Mr Bailey’s election: “Adrian has been an active member of the Aluminium APPG for a number of years. He understands manufacturing very well -...

The operators of the Fort William aluminium smelter have confirmed they are in negotiations to sell the plant. The Rio Tinto-owned operation employs about 170 people and is one of the largest employers in the Lochaber area. The plant, which is located next to Ben Nevis, is Rio Tinto's only operational aluminium smelter in the UK. It has been in existence for almost 90 years. The mining and metals group announced in January that it was reviewing its operations there. It told staff on Friday a sale was not automatic and that if a deal fell through, it would consider…

Constellium N.V. has announced the official opening of a new finishing line at its plant in Neuf-Brisach, France, for a total €180 million investment.

The new line is designed to meet the growing demand for aluminium automotive body sheet.

With a production capacity of 100,000 tons, the new 240m (787-foot) long finishing line features high-speed thermal treatment, precise temperature control, highly efficient quenching process as well as greater flexibility on the thickness of processed alloys. This diverse range of innovative technologies will enable Constellium to...

A unique collaboration between Ball and Belgian chocolate brand, Ovidias, sees the chocolatier bring its patented packaging concept to the commercial market. Ovidias is the only company to package its chocolates in beverage cans. 

Using Ball’s 330ml can, the product comes in a range of flavours and is available to purchase through Ovidias’s own e-commerce channel, where the product and environmental benefits of packaging in aluminium cans are made clear to the consumer.
 
Beverage cans provide the perfect packaging format for premium...

Executive Vice President and Head of Hydro's business area Bauxite & Alumina, Alberto Fabrini, will leave Norsk Hydro ASA. The change will be effective from October 18.

Alberto Fabrini was appointed Executive Vice President and member of Hydro's Corporate Management Board in 2014. He was previously Chief Operating Officer in Bauxite & Alumina and plant manager of the Albras primary plant in Brazil.
Fabrini has also held the position as plant manager of Hydro's former part-owned Alpart alumina refinery in Jamaica and plant manager at Hydro's Kurri...

Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), has announced the closing for its landmark syndicated term-loan facility, the first tranche of the company’s funding plan for the Line 6 project.

Alba’s original target for the syndicated loan was to raise between US$500 to US$750 million. However, due to heavy over subscription, Alba decided to upsize the loan to US$1.5 billion making it the largest corporate loan in the history of Bahrain. The US$1.5 billion carries an interest margin of 325 basis point per annum over the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR).

This facility...

Novelis has announced it is supplying aluminium solutions for the all-new Jaguar XFL, the first Jaguar model from Chery Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Co., Ltd (hereinafter referred to as "Chery Jaguar Land Rover").

The XFL launched in China on August 29 and features a body-in-white made of 75 percent aluminiium, the highest aluminium content achieved by an automaker to date in the Chinese automotive marketplace.

Novelis' Changzhou plant in China is the local supplier for the Chery Jaguar Land Rover Changshu Plant, China's first purpose-built aluminium body...

The largest flat-rolled aluminium producer of Turkey, Assan Alüminyum, a subsidiary of Kibar Holding, is planning to grow over the short and medium term through remarkable new investments. 

One of the major investment plans is the first modern and high-width aluminium hot rolling facility in Turkey. 

Asked about short-term investment plans of Assan Alüminyum and the strategic ideas behind it, together with the recent order placed for a new Achenbach OPTIMILL® foil rolling mill, Göksal Güngör, General Manager of Assan Alüminyum,...

Sapa has developed the first-ever automotive aluminium brake line using a high-strength aluminium alloy.

Sapa will be showcasing the new development at IZB, one of Europe’s leading trade fairs for the automotive supplier industry. It takes place on October 18-20 in Wolfsburg, Germany.

“The entire industry is on a mission to reduce weight in cars as a key to lowering emissions. In Sapa, we are using our knowledge to identify new parts where we can use aluminium to make cars lighter, safer and more efficient. The brake line development is one such innovation,...