Novelis Korea announced that Choi Min-young has been appointed the inaugural chair of the Aluminum Committee under the Korea Nonferrous Metals Association (KONMA). The committee will focus on policy development, supply chain resilience, regulatory response and promoting high-quality aluminum recycling. It also aims to expand closed-loop recycling and strengthen the global competitiveness of South Korea's aluminum industry.

Xinlyu Shidai announced that it had reviewed and approved the relevant proposals for the construction of the Xinlyu Shidai Aluminum Alloy Recycling Project in Qijiang, Chongqing. The project plans to build a capacity of 80,000 mt of high-end aluminum billet and 40,000 mt of extruded aluminum profiles. The wholly-owned subsidiary Xinlyu Xunhuan had been established earlier, after which the company agreed to add the wholly-owned subsidiary Xinlyu Tecai as an investor and implementation entity for the project. Recently, the company successfully obtained the state-owned construction land use right certificate for the project. The plot covers an area of 120,400.8 m², with a usage term until December 31, 2064. Subsequently, the certificate will be transferred to Xinlyu Tecai. Currently, the project is not expected to have a significant impact on the company’s performance in the short term.

Itochu and Daikin will launch a recycling program for used commercial air conditioners in Japan to recover high-purity aluminum, copper and steel for reuse in new products. Recycling 300,000 units annually could recover about 2,000 tonnes of aluminum scrap and 2,300 tonnes of copper scrap, supporting Japan's recycled material targets and reducing reliance on imported aluminum.

[SMM Aluminum Express News] Emirates Global Aluminium has inaugurated the Al Taweelah Aluminium Recycling Plant, the largest aluminum recycling facility in the UAE, with a production capacity of 185,000 tpy. The plant processes post-consumer and selected pre-consumer aluminum scrap into low-carbon billets and T-bars marketed under the RevivAL brand. The facility began producing recycled aluminum in February 2026, with full ramp-up expected within six months, subject to scrap availability. The project makes EGA the largest consumer of aluminum scrap in the UAE and increases the company's global recycling capacity to more than 400,000 tpy across the UAE, Europe, and the United States, with a further 200,000 tpy under development.

EGA (Emirates Global Aluminium) has successfully exceeded 400,000 mt/year of total secondary aluminum capacity across the UAE, Europe, and the US by adding capacity at its Al Taweelah recycling plant and planning to acquire the Italian aluminum recycling enterprise Eco Green. In addition, another 200,000 mt/year secondary aluminum capacity project is under construction in Europe and the US. On the acquisition front, EGA completed acquisitions of secondary aluminum plants in Germany and the US in 2024: EGA Light Metals Germany will expand its capacity to more than 6 times the original level and build a second site near Hannover, adding 150,000 mt/year of capacity, expected to be completed by 2028; EGA Spectro Alloys in Minnesota, US, plans to complete the first-phase expansion in 2025, adding 65,000 mt/year capacity, and add another 35,000 mt/year capacity in 2027. In addition, in April this year, EGA announced its intention to acquire an 80% stake in Italy's Eco Green, and this acquisition plan is currently pending regulatory approval.

The UK Government is strengthening its Critical Minerals Strategy by investing in domestic extraction, processing, recycling and supply chain development to enhance resource security and economic resilience. The Aluminum Federation (ALFED) welcomed the move, noting that aluminum was officially designated as both a Critical Mineral and a Growth Mineral in 2024 under the UK's Vision 2035 framework. ALFED urged policymakers to place greater emphasis on aluminum recycling, remelting, sorting and supply security advanced processing to strengthen domestic supply chains and promote circular manufacturing. The federation highlighted that recycled aluminum can be reused indefinitely while requiring only around 5% of the energy needed to produce primary aluminum, making it a key material for low-carbon manufacturing and long-ter.