Top 20 headlines from January 2025 marking a sharp beginning of the year in the global aluminium industry

At the beginning of 2025, primary aluminium and its essential raw materials witnessed some significant developments in key areas like production, value, projects, and trade policies. Additionally, advancements in technology, sustainability initiatives, and geopolitical factors occurred and reshaped the industry's future. The downstream sector has not shied away from some critical progress driven by rising demand and a strong push towards sustainability. Staying informed about these critical updates is important for gaining valuable insights into the current market, anticipating potential market dynamics, adapting strategies, and making well-informed strategic decisions for business growth.

So, here's to the top 20 headlines from across the aluminium value chain in January 2025.

Updates from bauxite

1) Anil Agarwal, the chairman of Vedanta Resources Limited, announced his plans to start building the dream project of 6 million tonnes per annum of alumina refinery and 30 lakh tonnes of aluminium smelter with a budget of INR 1 lakh crore (US$11.55 billion). The project is expected to be commissioned in the next three years, starting with the first phase initially, located in the Rayagada district of Odisha to take advantage of the nearby bauxite from Vedanta's Sijimali bauxite mine, which is currently under development for exploration.

2) Metro Mining Limited announced a total bauxite shipment of 2.1 million tonnes in Q4 2024 despite challenging weather conditions in December 2024. The full-year shipments totalled 5.7 million tonnes, setting the stage for achieving the annual shipment target of 6.5–7.0 million tonnes of wet bauxite.

3) Chinese enterprise State Power Investment Corp. (SPIC) announced a heavy-duty alumina refinery to be established in Guinea, following successful production of bauxite in the West African country for the past three years. The plant, with its massive structural planning, has the potential to become the country's biggest preceding production to the only other refinery of Russian-owned United Co. Rusal Friguia's refinery, which has the capacity to produce at least 600,000 tonnes a year.