Base Metals News

Related Metals and Minerals Industry News

• October 2023: Materion Corporation secured a USD 5.0 million contract from the United States Air Force Research Laboratory (US-AFRL) to further its research and development efforts in additive manufacturing, specifically focusing on beryllium and aluminum-beryllium alloys. This expansion in additive manufacturing for these specialized materials is poised to offer substantial benefits in producing optic structures, guidance systems, and thermal management applications.
• April 2022: IBC Advanced Alloys inaugurated its copper alloy casting facility and expanded its copper alloy foundry in Franklin, Indiana. This strategic move allowed the company to merge its three production sites into one cohesive, vertically integrated operation dedicated to manufacturing copper and copper alloy products.

• June 2024: Vale SA announced that it would invest up to USD 3.3 billion in enhancing its mining operations in Brazil and Canada, aiming to elevate its copper and nickel production capacity over the next four years. This strategic initiative is designed to leverage the surging demand for these metals, broaden the company's revenue streams, and secure a competitive edge in the market.
• February 2024: Jubilee Metals announced that it would ramp up its copper production in Zambia to an annual target of 25,000 tonnes (t). This expansion strategy centers on augmenting the company's copper resource base and refining its processing capabilities. With this initiative, Jubilee aims to solidify its foothold in the region's copper landscape.

• June 2024: SHENMAO Technology Inc. launched a new thermal fatigue-resistant solder paste, PF918-P250. This paste can meet high-reliability requirements and offers advanced features and superior performance for electronic products requiring exceptional durability.
• October 2023: AIM Solder (UK) Ltd acquired William Rowland Limited’s solder products business, encompassing solders and alloys. Through this acquisition, the company would expand its capabilities and enhance customer offerings in the metal industry.
• September 2023: Stannol GmbH & Co. KG launched its new SP6000 solder paste in Munich. This solder paste has been developed as a standard for use with the alloys TSC305 (Sn96.5Ag3Cu0.5) T4 and TSC105 (Sn98.5Ag1Cu0.5) T4. Compared to conventional solder pastes, it can save more than 85% of CO2 emissions.

• November 2022: Yildirim Group announced the acquisition of 100% shares of Elementis plc's chromium business for an enterprise value of USD 170 million. With this agreement in place, Yildirim Group has acquired Elementis Chromium's two production facilities in Corpus Christi (TX) and Castle Hayne (NC), as well as three facilities in Amarillo (TX), Dakota (NE) and Milwaukee (WI).
• June 2022: Tenaris announced that it would invest nearly USD 29 million in its steel shop in Dalmine to expand the facility's capacity to produce specialty steels with a high chromium content, such as chromium 13. The investment was projected to be completed by the first part of 2023 and involve three stages of the production process.
• January 2022: Yildirim Group acquired Albchrome Holding, an Albanian chrome and ferrochromium company. The main motive of this acquisition is to support the continuation of its progress and to further strengthen the company's position in the world markets.

• October 2023: ProChem joined the Society of Chemical Manufacturers & Affiliates (SOCMA). SOCMA is the only US-based trade association that is completely dedicated to the specialty and fine chemicals industry. SOCMA provides a legislative and regulatory advocate, promotes the highest level of safety, and strengthens business intelligence and production operations to support and stimulate growth in the specialty chemicals sector.

• November 2023: Glencore signed an agreement with Teck Resources Limited for the acquisition of a 77% effective interest in the entirety of Teck’s steelmaking coal business, Elk Valley Resources. This acquisition amounted to USD 6.93 billion.
• April 2022: Glencore and General Motors announced their multi-year sourcing agreement. It involves Glencore supplying GM with cobalt from its Murrin operation in Australia. Also, the cobalt processed from Australia is expected to be used in GM's Ultium battery cathodes, powering electric vehicles such as the Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC HUMMER EV, and Cadillac LYRIQ.
• March 2022: MMG announced the expansion of the Kinsevere operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with an investment between USD 500 million and USD 600 million, extending the project's operational life by at least 13 years. MMG expects that the expansion project will increase the production of the copper cathode to up to 80,000 tpa and 4,000-6,000 tpa of cobalt in cobalt hydroxide.

• June 2023: Nemaska Lithium announced the commencement of construction of its new production facility in Bécancour. This new facility would produce lithium hydroxide for batteries, which the Whabouchi mine would supply.
• May 2023: Nemaska Lithium collaborated with Ford to provide lithium hydroxide produced at the company's production facility in Bécancour. According to this collaboration, Nemaska Lithium would provide up to 13,000 tons of lithium hydroxide to Ford for manufacturing electric vehicle batteries.
• March 2023: Albemarle Corporation expanded its lithium-processing facility in Chester County, South Carolina. This production facility is expected to support the production of around 2.4 million electric vehicles annually. Albemarle Corporation has announced a new lithium processing facility that will produce approximately 50,000 tons of battery-grade lithium hydroxide.

The recent developments pertaining to the major players in the market are being covered in the complete study.

• Jul 2023: The European Commission adopted a proposal to revise the Mercury Regulation to protect EU citizens and the environment from toxic mercury. The revision will fully prohibit the use of dental amalgam, which currently uses 40 tonnes of mercury in the EU annually.
• Feb 2023: The governments of Gabon, Jamaica, and Sri Lanka joined forces to fight back against damaging beauty practices, launching a joint USD 14 million project to eliminate the use of mercury in skin-lightening products.
• Mar 2022: During the fourth Conference of Parties (COP4) in Bali, Indonesia introduced a global declaration that calls on parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury to tackle the illegal trade of mercury.

• April 2022: Nyrstar Australia announced intentions to invest USD 285 million in the construction of a new electrolysis facility at its Hobart Zinc Works operations in Tasmania.
• September 2022: Agnico Eagle Mines agreed to purchase a 50% stake in Minas de San Nicolás (MSN), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teck Resources that owns the San Nicolás copper-zinc development project in Zacatecas, Mexico.