[SMM Aluminum Express News] Aluminum Corporation of China (Chalco) will invest approximately US$1 billion to build a 1.2 Mtpa alumina refinery in Guinea, strengthening upstream bauxite-to-alumina integration amid tightening global aluminum supply chains. The project includes supporting port infrastructure, while the Guinean government retains the option to acquire up to a 35% equity stake in the development.

This week, ferrous metals continued to pull back, with coking coal and coke seeing the most notable correction. In the first half of the week, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a notice on the implementation measures for capacity replacement in the steel industry, proposing that the capacity replacement ratio for ironmaking and steelmaking should be no less than 1.5:1. The further tightening of capacity replacement requirements had a longer-term impact. Meanwhile, macro markets outside China experienced significant fluctuations, and market expectations for ex-China "interest rate hikes" strengthened. In the second half of the week, data on the five major steel products were released, showing production increased somewhat while inventory continued to decline. Spot market side, traders began to show some flexibility on prices, the spot-futures price spread for hot-rolled coil continued to narrow, some spot-futures arbitrage traders mainly cut losses with shipments, and end-users continued to restock on an as-needed basis...

In Guinea, in the capital Conakry, Chalco Hong Kong—the project investment entity of Chalco, a publicly listed firm under Chinalco Group—signed an agreement related to the alumina project with the Guinean government. The local time in Guinea was May 21. The Chalco Guinea alumina project is another major international project invested and constructed by Chinalco Group in Guinea, following the Simandou iron ore project. Leveraging Guinea's high-quality resources, the project plans to invest approximately $1 billion to build a production line with an annual output of 1.2 million mt of alumina.

According to the latest data from the customs website, in March 2026, SMM hydrometallurgy intermediate product imports reached 154,933 mt in physical content, down 10% MoM and up 8.8% YoY. By country, the main reduction this month was attributable to the decline in hydrometallurgy intermediate product imports from Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and New Caledonia.

According to the latest data from SMM's customs database, imports of SMM hydrometallurgy intermediate products reached 154,933 mt in physical content in March 2026, down 10% MoM and up 8.8% YoY. By country, the main decline this month was attributable to reduced imports of hydrometallurgy intermediate products from Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and New Caledonia.

CIBF2026 Solid-State Battery Recap: It’s Complicated – Everyone Is Moving Toward Solid-State, but Everyone Is Still Testing the Waters May 13–15, 2026 – The solid-state battery exhibition revealed that solid-state has become a "must-have" for exhibitors. However, technology paths (sulfide/oxide/semi-solid) remain deeply divided, the definition of "mass production" has been diluted, and most products are still in the sample-validation stage.