Raw Material Market
Indonesia restricts non-green energy smelter projects, and new ferronickel and stainless steel projects may be affected
The Indonesian government will limit the number of smelter projects that do not have a clean energy plan or are not environmentally friendly. The limit is designed to meet the growing global market demand for environmentally friendly products.
The Limiting smelter projects without a clean energy plan is part of the industrialization of raw materials for batteries and electric vehicles (EVs), which will be the backbone of Indonesia’s future. The government is also studying the possibility of integrating upstream and downstream of the nickel, bauxite, copper, and tin industries into important parts of the battery and electric vehicle industries. They will also question the sources of electricity used to power smelters that process raw materials, so some smelters favor renewable power plants. the
Seeking cooperation with Tsingshan, Australian Nickel will raise US$471 million to purchase nickel assets
Nickel Australia recently said it would raise $471 million to help fund the acquisition of several nickel projects in Indonesia, adding that it would also develop nickel for the battery industry. To develop nickel for batteries, the company will also seek cooperation with Shanghai Decheng Investment (Group) Co. Ltd., a unit of Tsingshan Group, the world’s largest nickel producer.
Nickel Australia said it aimed to transform its business from a historical focus on the stainless steel market into a leading producer of battery-grade “Grade 1” nickel through partnerships and acquisitions. As part of the acquisition, the company said it would buy a 10 percent stake in Indonesia-based PT Huayue Nickel Cobalt from China’s Tsingshan Group’s Newsstride Development Ltd for $270 million. It will also pay $70 million for a 10% interest in the Oracle Nickel Project in Indonesia, of which it already owns 70%.
Liqin OBI Island HPAL Phase II project successfully put into operation
At 8:00 a.m. on January 17, 2023, Indonesian Eastern Time, the commissioning ceremony of the Legend HPAL wet process phase II project was held on OBI Island. Chairman Cai Jianyong of Legion Resources attended the ceremony in person and delivered a speech. Jin Tao, the project manager of the second phase of HPAL, firstly expressed his sincere thanks to all participating partners such as Hualiujian, CCID, ENFI, Beiwei Environmental Protection, Indonesian Jinqiao, as well as the equipment department and electrical instrument department of HPAL!
It reviewed the arduous struggle of the second phase of the wet method since it broke ground on September 15, 2021. After 16 months of construction, the main production line of the second phase of the wet process has been formed, and the main line was put into trial operation on January 14 this year, and the tailings system was put into operation on the 15th. At present, 60% of the load is running stably, and the situation is in line with the plan, reaching the initial goal.
Stainless Steel Market
JISCO Hongxing Stainless Steel proposed the main goals for the next five years of development
At the Third Congress of the Stainless Steel Branch of Hongxing Iron & Steel Co., Ltd., Jiuquan Steel Group, the Communist Party of China, the main goals for the next five years of development were proposed:
01. Optimize the production capacity of 300 series and 400 series, take the route of differentiated, multi-variety, small batch, high-profit products
02. Relying on JISCO’s green power energy and green manufacturing system, JISCO took the lead in realizing green manufacturing within JISCO and affixed a “green” label to JISCO’s stainless steel
03. The proportion of R&D investment increased from the current 3.5% to more than 5%
04. The output of new products accounted for more than 50%
05. The domestic market share of high-end martensitic stainless steel is more than 70%, among which the domestic market share of 6Cr13 martensitic stainless steel for razors is more than 90%.
06. The domestic market share of 430 stainless steel products is over 20%.
07. The domestic market share of duplex stainless steel products is over 20%.
The Ansteel Lianzhong Co., Ltd. intensifies the development and promotion of new products, and lays out new fields of application for “multi-point blossoming”
In 2022, facing the unfavorable situation of sluggish stainless steel market demand and fierce competition for traditional types of stainless steel products, resulting in gradually reduced profits, Angang Lianzhong Company will increase its efforts in new product development and promotion and achieve certain results.
It is understood that in 2022, the company will have a total of 34 new product projects, of which 23 have opened up the process path and 7 have been mass-produced. The accumulative sales volume of new products is about 35,000 tons, and the profit is 3.7 million yuan, forming a multi-point flowering situation in the research and development of new products. Develop a variety of super austenitic stainless steels, which are widely used in boilers, pressure vessels, heating pipes, and other fields.
Mastered high-nitrogen production technology for the first time, developed high-nitrogen austenitic stainless steel AL1803; developed high-corrosion-resistant nickel-saving austenitic stainless steel 204C5 specially used for exporting home appliances; developed high-strength 301 hard products, and successfully supplied world-renowned electronics companies;
Successful trial production of high corrosion resistance and anti-wrinkle elevator panel stainless steel 4ALS, etc. The successful research and development of various new products have enriched the company’s product categories and helped the product structure adjustment. The company is also actively strengthening cooperation with end customers to lay out new areas for the application of stainless steel products.
Tsingtuo Group: Driven by innovation, accumulating energy for the development of the stainless steel industry in the “post-100 billion” era
At present, Tsingtuo’s high-performance stainless steel wide plate and supporting projects located in Wanwu Town have entered the stage of plant equipment installation and commissioning. This project is a new project of Tsingtuo Group to seize the strategic heights of global stainless steel medium-wide and thick plates.
It consists of Tsingtuo’s 1780mm hot continuous rolling and supporting expansion project and Tsingtuo’s high-performance stainless steel new material and supporting the project (Phase I) two major projects It consists of mainly constructing a high-performance stainless steel smelting production line with an annual output of 900,000 tons and a stainless steel hot-rolled broadband production line with an annual output of 3 million tons. After reaching full capacity, it can realize an annual industrial output value of more than 40 billion yuan.
Li Xueqiang, Deputy General Manager of Tsingtuo Group Hot Rolling and Supporting Expansion Project: We are now constructing the project, (stainless steel smelting production line) as a whole has been completed, 85% of the equipment installation has been installed, and some equipment has been debugged successively.
The debugging is completed, and then the official production will start after the festival. The 1780 hot-rolling project has been postponed for several months due to the epidemic this year, and the hot-rolling project can start production around the end of April and May next year.
The deep processing of high-end stainless steel materials in Taishan is steadily advancing
According to news from Jinan Daily, recently, at the project site of the high-end stainless steel material deep processing base in Laiwu District, Jinan City, the main structure of the project plant has been completed, and the workers are in full swing to speed up the pace of project construction, striving to realize the entry of production equipment as soon as possible and put it into operation to achieve results. The high-end stainless steel material deep processing base project will start construction in late September 2022.
It mainly produces medical-grade stainless steel pipes and fittings, and stainless steel materials for construction. It can replace PPR/PE pipes in the future and is a priority-recommended product encouraged by national policies. After the project is completed, it can realize an annual output value of more than 500 million yuan, profits and taxes of more than 30 million yuan, and 300 new jobs, becoming a new economic growth point in the region.
Macro Market
29 provinces and municipalities have set their economic growth targets for this year at around 5% or even higher
With the release of Henan’s 2022 economic operation on January 21, the 2022 annual GDP data of 31 provinces and municipalities have all been “released”, and a total of 16 provinces’ GDP growth rate outperformed the national growth rate of 3%. Judging from the 2023 economic growth targets released by the “two sessions” in various places recently, 29 of the 31 provinces and municipalities have set their economic growth target at around 5% or even higher.
Focusing on major national strategies such as expanding domestic demand and industrial transformation and upgrading, consumption, infrastructure, and manufacturing have become the main starting points for steady growth in various regions.
Automobile consumer coupons are issued in many places across the country to help expand domestic demand
In order to further expand domestic demand and promote mass consumption, many places across the country have recently issued automobile consumption coupons. In the first half of 2023, Shandong Province will continue to issue 200 million yuan of auto consumption coupons to support consumers to purchase new energy passenger cars, fuel passenger cars, and scrap old cars to buy new cars.
The three types of car purchases will issue up to 6,000 yuan and 5,000 yuan respectively and 7,000 yuan consumption vouchers; Zhejiang Jinhua issued 37.5 million yuan of New Year consumption vouchers, including 29 million yuan of automobile consumption vouchers; Jiangsu Wuxi will start issuing “Happy New Year” new energy vehicle consumption vouchers, with a total of 12 million yuan issued.
UN report predicts China’s economic growth in 2023
On January 25, the United Nations released the “World Economic Situation and Prospects in 2023”. The report predicts that as the Chinese government optimizes epidemic prevention policies and adopts favorable economic measures, China’s domestic consumption demand will also rise in the future, and China’s economic growth in 2023 will accelerate and is expected to reach 4.8%. The report also predicts that the Chinese economy will drive regional economic growth.
Commodity prices rise overall
In terms of commodities, from January 23 to 25 (Monday to Wednesday), the settlement prices of WTI crude oil and Brent crude oil futures fluctuated and fell back by 1.72% and 1.83%, and rebounded sharply by 1.57% and 1.07% on January 26; From March 26 to 26, the settlement prices of LME lead, nickel, zinc, and aluminum futures rose by 4.47%, 3.98%, 1.50% and 0.19% respectively, while LME copper fell by 0.56%. In terms of precious metals, the settlement prices of COMEX silver and gold futures rose by 1.98% respectively, and 0.07%.
WTO Director-General: China is the engine of world growth
On January 20, local time, the 2023 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting closed in Davos. WTO Director-General Iweala said that the world has not yet fully recovered from the impact of the epidemic, but the situation is improving. China is the engine of world growth. The reopening will bring domestic demand, which is a great opportunity for the world. positives.
Foreign institutions are optimistic about China’s economic recovery
Xing Ziqiang, Chief China Economist of Morgan Stanley, said that this year may be a global recession, and Europe and the United States may face the risk of a near-recession. However, as long as China responds appropriately, whether it is through the escort of macro policies or the support of enterprises from micro and regulatory policies Rest assured, coupled with getting out of the epidemic, there may be a year when “the west is not bright and the east is bright”.
Xing Ziqiang predicts that China’s GDP growth rate may reach about 5.7% this year. In addition, Zhu Haibin, chief China economist at JPMorgan Chase, said that China’s economy will begin a strong recovery in the second quarter of 2023, and the quarter-on-quarter growth rate will be adjusted to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 10.4%, compared with the previous forecast of 6.1%. The quarter-on-quarter growth rate is expected to be 7.5% in the third quarter and 6.1% in the fourth quarter, and the annual growth forecast is raised to 5.6%.