Aluminium Y-o-Y trade hike noted after bauxite export-import inflation in Ukraine

In 2024, aluminium and aluminium product imports inflated by 21.7 per cent Y-o-Y to US$446.006 million (with US$36.943 million in December). Aluminium exports rose by 27.4 per cent to US$124.408 million, with US$8.426 million in December, published in the customs data released by the States Customs Service of Ukraine.

Aluminium and aluminium product exports from Ukraine during the first six months of 2024 were valued at US$54.175 million, up by 12.8 per cent Year-on-Year. In June alone, the export value was US$10.383 million.

Also, as stated in the statistical report released by the State Customs Service (SCS) earlier, bauxite import in monetary terms increased by 50.9 per cent (USD 2.681 million) from January to October, indicating a 46.8 per cent growth Y-o-Y. This year's imports can be attributed to Turkey, which has supplied 70.31 per cent of supplies in monetary terms and China, which has accounted for 26.67 per cent.

Mykolaiv Alumina Plant (MAP) imports bauxite to Ukraine. Bauxite is an aluminium ore used as a raw material to produce alumina, which in turn is used to produce primary aluminium. They are also used as fluxes in ferrous metallurgy.

Here, it is to be noted that in January-July this year, Ukraine boosted imports of aluminium ore and bauxite concentrate in physical terms by 5 per cent as compared to the same period last year, with a total import of 6,772 thousand tonnes. Meanwhile, the imports during the previous three months have pulled the number to this comparitively high range. The country is in a geopolitical crisis. The Mykolaiv alumina plant remains shut, and the imports are gaining figures daily.

According to an industry expert, "Bauxite from Turkey, in particular, is very often a key ingredient of cement clinker, as a source of alumina, iron and silica. With massive destruction affecting Ukraine, they certainly need a lot of cement and concrete, so cement would be operating for sure. I can't be 100 per cent confident, but I'm quite sure this is where Ukraine's bauxite imports go."