Rusal Forecasts Russian Aluminum Consumption to Double in Seven Years

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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Russia's world aluminum major, United Company Rusal (Moscow, Russia), expects aluminum consumption to more than double in the country and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) over the next seven years from an anticipated consumption of 900,000 tons in 2012.

"We expect consumption to top 1 million tons in the next 18 months. The automobile industry, which will grow by up to 8%, will be the main consumption growth driver in the next seven or eight years," said Sergei Belsky, Rusal's director for sales in Russia and the CIS.

Russia and the CIS markets were the most lucrative, because 75% of the supplies there were value-added products. Rusal aims to boost sales of cast-house alloys, used mainly in the automobile industry, by 6% this year in Russia and the CIS, which is the highest growth for any Rusal product, Belsky said.

The second-largest growth will be for the cable industry as Russia modernizes its power grid infrastructure aided by government funding. Sales of wire-rod should rise 3% in 2012 in the two territories.

Rusal has also started to develop a new aluminum zirconium alloy that has been tested and could go on sale soon. The company's Irkutsk smelter is launching production of aluminum alloyed with rare earth and transition metals that could be used instead of copper in the cable industry.

Rusal has more than 600 customers in Russia and the CIS: 36% in the fabrication industry; 30% cable industry; 13% extrusion industry; 9% auto industry and 7% in ferrous metallurgy, Belsky said.

Rusal is the world's largest aluminum producer, with an annual production capacity of primary aluminum of 4.7 million tons and 11.5 million tons of alumina, giving it a 9% global share for both products. The company employs 72,000 people worldwide.

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