Hydro is setting up a regional
office in Doha, Qatar, for marketing Hydro's metal products in the
Middle East, the Gulf states and Southern Africa. The office will
be a part of Hydro's business area Metal Markets and its Asian
Regional Organization, based in Singapore.
The positive development of demand for aluminium metal products
in Asia and the rest of the world continues and is creating
interesting markets for Qatalum.
|
| DEMAND: The demand for aluminium casthouse
products in Asia is strong and growing. (Photo: Halvor
Molland) |
Qatalum will produce and market mainly value-added casthouse
products extrusion ingots and foundry alloys, in the Middle East
and the Gulf states, Asia, Southern Europe and in the U.S. The
markets for these products are driven by the construction markets,
general manufacturing output and automotive production.
The slightly positive development of demand for metal products
such as extrusion ingot, sheet ingot, foundry alloys and wire rod
in the second half of 2009 has continued into 2010. The demand for
casthouse products in Asia is strong and growing, while the
consumption in both Europe and North America remains below the
levels experienced in 2007 and 2008 and there are no indications of
a fast recovery to pre-crisis consumption levels.
Full Qatalum production next year
This year, Qatalum production is estimated to be more than 300,000
tonnes, and 2011 will be the first year of full production. The
Qatalum casthouse is designed have a capacity to produce 625,000
tonnes, slightly more than the Qatalum production of primary
aluminium of 585,000 tonnes. The balance will be made up of
remelting of aluminium process scrap and other cold metal.
Hydro's global market organization will bring all the products
from Qatalum to the markets.
Hydro supplied the market with 2.4 million tonnes of casthouse
products in 2009. Hydro is the market leader for aluminium
casthouse products in Europe and has established strong market
positions in Asia and the U.S. based on metal from its primary
aluminium plants in Australia and dedicated remelting facilities
centrally in the markets, as well as other sources.
Stronger market position
Qatalum will be an important source of quality products that will
allow Hydro to increase its sales and market shares in Asia. In the
U.S., Hydro will through Qatalum be able to offer metal products
from primary aluminium, in addition to the products from our U.S.
remelters. This gives Hydro a new and strengthened market
position.
As a part of the global Hydro marketing network, customers of
the Qatalum metal will have access to the extended services
offered. These include technical and commercial services as well as
scrap conversion in Hydro's dedicated remelt facilities located
strategically in key metal markets.
Hydro is also stepping up its activities in recycling of other
qualities of aluminium scrap. Aluminium can be recycled requiring
only 5 percent of the energy needed to originally produce primary
aluminium.
SOURCE
