SHANGHAI, Jan 8 (SMM) – China produced some 6.18 million mt of alumina in December, up 11.22% from a year ago, with average daily output at 199,000 mt, 1.69% lower on the month. In 2018, China's alumina output totalled 70.48 million mt, 3.01% higher than the same period last year.

Annual production targets drove some alumina producers to accelerate operation in December, but this failed to pull up average daily output.  

Tight supplies of natural gas in the heating season affected production across northern alumina producers. Air pollution warninsg across Henan province deterred operations of local alumina plants in December. Also in the northern province of Shanxi, intensified environmental curbs affected production of roasting furnaces. This, together with renovation on generators at some mills, are expected to affect alumina capacity by 800,000 mt for three months. Maintenance on roasting furnaces at some south-western mills also lowered daily production. 

SMM expects average daily output of alumina in January to rise to 200,000 mt, as maintenance in the south-west ends and some capacity resumes in Shanxi mills after renovation works. This is estimated to generate 6.2 million mt of alumina output in January.

China produced over 2.99 million mt of primary aluminium in December, down 0.3% from December 2017. This lowered overall production in 2018 by 0.6% year on year, to 36.12 million mt. 

By the end of December, domestic primary aluminium capacity under operation stood at 36.06 million mt/year, down 1.64 million mt/year from a high at the end of June. More aluminium plants cut capacity in December, including high-costs mills in provinces of Shandong, Gansu, Shanxi, Ningxia, and Henan. In 2018, cuts in aluminium capacity exceeded 3 million mt. Established aluminium capacity stood at 42.12 million mt/year by the end of December, with average operating rate at 85.6%. 

However, some new capacity continued to commission in January, and capacity expanded further at mills such as Shanxi Meixin, Inner Mongolia’s Chuangyuan and Guyang, Guangxi Baikuang, and Yunnan Aluminium. SMM expects China’s output of primary aluminium to register 3.01 million mt in January, up 0.5% on the month but down 0.1% on the year.