Nonferrous

• JCI, Saft to form nickel battery joint venture Oct 11, 2005

  Automotive parts maker Johnson Controls Inc. (JCI) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Paris-based battery manufacturer Saft Groupe SA to form a joint venture to develop, manufacture and sell nickel metal-hydride and lithium ion batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles.

• HudBay Minerals will pay $13M for White Pine Copper Refinery Oct 11, 2005

  HudBay Minerals Inc. plans to acquire White Pine Copper Refinery Inc., White Pine, Mich., for $13 million.

• Mueller boosting brass rod 7¢/lb. Oct 11, 2005

  Mueller Brass Co., Port Huron, Mich., is raising its selling price for brass rod by 7 cents to $1.61 a pound, effective Wednesday, to reflect higher raw material costs. Mueller also increased its customer scrap buyback truckload price by 7 cents to $1.50 a pound.

• Mitsui Bussan becomes Comex clearing member Oct 10, 2005

  Mitsui Bussan Commodities (USA) Inc. has been approved as a clearing member of the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

• Hydro accuses Tadaz of breach of contract Oct 10, 2005

  Norwegian aluminum producer Norsk Hydro ASA is taking legal action against Tajik Aluminium Plant (Tadaz) for breach of contract regarding metal supplies in 2004.

• Alcan in talks to sell Swiss aluminum smelter Oct 10, 2005

  Alcan Inc., Montreal, has entered into preliminary discussions with a Valais, France,-based consortium led by Albert Bass about the potential sale of its 44,000-tonne-per-year aluminum smelter in Steg, Switzerland.

• Cerro Metal sets 7¢/lb. increases Oct 10, 2005

  Cerro Metal Products Co., Bellefonte, Pa., said Monday it is adjusting prices for brass rod alloy 360 to reflect a 7-cent-per-pound increase in metal value to $1.61 per pound. The published buyback price for customer brass turnings also will increase 7 cents to $1.50 per pound.

• DNSC looking to sell last of US cobalt stockpile Oct 10, 2005

  The recently published 2006 Annual Materials Plan (AMP) allows the U.S. Defense National Stockpile Center (DNSC) to sell up to 6 million pounds of cobalt this fiscal year-although the agency only has 4.4 million pounds left in its stockpile.

• Praxair Electronics buying Alcan's high-purity aluminum unit in France Oct 10, 2005

  The Praxair Electronics division of Praxair Inc. has offered to buy Alcan Inc.'s high-purity aluminum refining and casting operation in Mercus, France.

• Falconbridge in court vs. strikers to secure clear path to Kidd Creek Oct 10, 2005

  Falconbridge Ltd., Toronto, is seeking a court injunction aimed at keeping picketing workers from blocking access to its Kidd Creek Metallurgical facility.

• Reporter's notebook ITA notables and not Oct 07, 2005

  International Titanium Association's Titanium 2005 conference

• Tight zinc concentrate market sets the table for lightning-fast TC talks Oct 07, 2005

  Things are tighter than bark on a tree in the zinc concentrate market.

• A hurricane and two strikes later, zinc is finally off and running Oct 07, 2005

  Last Thursday, just a few days into the fourth quarter, zinc reached $1,460.50 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange, a level last seen in September 1997.

• VSMPO ponders the next move Oct 07, 2005

  As global titanium demand moves toward a cyclical peak, Verkhnaya Salda Metallurgical Production Association (VSMPO), Sverdlovsk, Russia, mulls whether to chart expansion beyond its current plans.

• Black Swan tagged to fill OMG refinery feed gap Oct 07, 2005

  Just days after disclosing that its full-year earnings would be compromised by reduced nickel production as a result of a raw material shortage, OM Group Inc., Cleveland, announced steps to shore up those supplies.

• Copper charges skyward on LME; fund frenzy trumps fundamentals Oct 07, 2005

  Copper jumped nearly 1 percent Friday on the London Metal Exchange, with three-month metal hitting $3,917 a tonne at the final kerb close, up $34 from the previous day's close.

• UK attacks fingered in aluminum backwardation Oct 07, 2005

  Aluminum slid into backwardation on the London Metal Exchange Friday, sparking confusion in the market given that the metal had been trading at a strong contango for a number of months.

• Indium Corp. says force majeure at Kidd will not hurt its customers Oct 06, 2005

  Indium Corp. of America, Utica, N.Y., a major processor of minor metals from Falconbridge Ltd.'s Kidd Creek complex, said the strike there will not have a major impact on its customers.

• Exide, key execs accused of fraud in suit brought by investment firm Oct 06, 2005

  Battery maker Exide Technologies Inc., Alpharetta, Ga., and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., New York, have been named in a lawsuit alleging fraud and violations of the Securities Exchange Act in relation to Exide's March 2005 note offering.

• DNSC details Sept. awards of four metals Oct 06, 2005

  The U.S. Defense National Stockpile Center (DNSC) announced the sale of four metals in September under the basic ordering agreement (BOA) format.

• Cobalt prices slide in thin trade; high stocks trump firm demand Oct 06, 2005

  Cobalt prices have dipped to their lowest mark since the beginning of August, surprising some market participants who continue to perceive strength in the market.

• Strike at Teck's Trail ends as workers vote to accept deal Oct 06, 2005

  The 11-week strike at Teck Cominco Ltd.'s operations in Trail, British Columbia, ended Wednesday evening, when workers voted overwhelmingly to accept the contract negotiated by union leaders.

• High natural gas prices threaten alumina capacity, producer says Oct 05, 2005

  Large swathes of the North Atlantic alumina capacity could be under threat if prices come down while input costs such as natural gas continue at record levels, according to industry participants.

• Rusal accused of forcing out Tajik partner Oct 05, 2005

  Oleg Deripaska, owner of OAO Rusal, Moscow, and Alexander Bulygin, chief executive officer, are facing allegations in Britain's High Court about the company's business practices in Tajikistan.