LME Aluminium Inventories Fell by 1,800 mt on May 6

[SMM Aluminum Express News] Azerbaijan is exploring a separate new primary aluminum smelter with capacity of around 200,000 tonnes/year, Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov said at a September 22 meeting chaired by President Ilham Aliyev. The project has attracted interest from foreign investors and forms part of Azerbaijan’s longer-term ambition to develop into a regional processing hub, supported by competitive energy prices, transport links and access to raw materials from Central Asia and the South Caucasus. The proposed 200,000 t/y smelter is separate from Azeraluminium’s existing expansion in Ganja, where electrolysis capacity is planned to increase from around 50,000 t/y to 100,000 t/y by 2030. Azerbaijan will also assess whether the Zaylik alunite deposit can provide a domestic raw-material base for the aluminum value chain. The 2027-2030 mining and metallurgy programme requires an estimated AZN 5.3 billion (US$3.12 billion) of investment, around 80% of which is expected from non-budget sources.

[SMM Noticias exprés del aluminio] Azerbaiyán planea duplicar la capacidad de aluminio primario de Azeraluminium en su planta de electrólisis de Ganja, de unas 50.000 toneladas anuales a 100.000 toneladas anuales para 2030. La ampliación está incluida en el recién aprobado Programa Estatal 2027-2030 para el Desarrollo de las Industrias Minera y Metalúrgica, que también contempla una capacidad de 50.000 toneladas anuales de aluminio laminado. El presidente Ilham Aliyev afirmó que la ampliación del aluminio debería estar terminada para finales de 2030.