Aluminum Exhibition | Building a More Sustainable Aluminum Industry Chain

China's aluminum industry is advancing toward a more sustainable and high-quality development path. As the world's largest producer and consumer of aluminum products, China ranked first globally in 2024 in the output of alumina, primary aluminum, aluminum processed products, and recycled aluminum. However, facing dual pressures of resource supply shortages and energy-saving decarbonization, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and nine other departments recently jointly issued the Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of the Aluminum Industry (2025-2027), providing clear guidance for the industry's transformation and upgrading. 

In terms of technological innovation, China's aluminum industry has achieved significant breakthroughs, pioneering advanced technologies such as the lime Bayer process, while continuously reducing the comprehensive energy consumption of primary aluminum production. However, key technologies like low-carbon smelting and red mud comprehensive utilization still require breakthroughs. The Implementation Plan emphasizes strengthening R&D in energy-saving, consumption reduction, and new aluminum alloy preparation, supporting collaboration between leading enterprises and research institutions. Companies such as Chinalco and Shandong Weiqiao have made important progress in the development of high-end aluminum materials for aerospace and new energy vehicles, leading the domestic market share in automotive aluminum sheets.

Green transformation has become a crucial direction for the industry's development. The aluminum industry faces severe carbon emission challenges, and the Implementation Plan sets a target for clean energy to account for 30% of total energy use by 2027. Leading enterprises like Nanshan Aluminum have established ESG energy systems, vigorously developing rooftop photovoltaic projects, while Weiqiao Group has invested over 10 billion yuan in environmental governance, promoting the coordinated development of "wind, solar, hydro, energy storage, and afforestation." The promotion and application of recycled aluminum is particularly critical, as its energy consumption is only 5% of that of primary aluminum, making it a key breakthrough for industry decarbonization.

Digital and intelligent transformation is reshaping the aluminum industry ecosystem. Chinalco has built an independently controlled cloud data center and AI computing center, launching the nonferrous metals industry's first "Kun'an" large-scale AI model, achieving intelligent breakthroughs in 18 application scenarios. The Implementation Plan calls for deepening the application of AI technology across the entire industry chain, from mining to smelting, constructing a digital transformation scenario map to enhance production efficiency and product quality.

Meanwhile, industrial structure optimization is steadily progressing. The Implementation Plan encourages mergers and acquisitions, fosters specialized and innovative SMEs, and avoids low-level competition. By enhancing the resilience of the industrial chain, China's aluminum industry is transitioning from scale advantages to quality advantages. By 2027, with breakthroughs in key technologies and improved green development levels, China's aluminum industry will contribute more Chinese wisdom and solutions to global sustainable development, achieving the leap from an aluminum powerhouse to an aluminum leader.