DUSHANBE, April 22, 2016 Asia-Plus — The Tajik Aluminum Company (TALCO) press center reports that the Tajik aluminum smelter has produced more than 37,700 of primary aluminum over the first three months of this year, which was nearly 5,600 tons more than in the same period last year.
Tajikistan’s aluminum exports have reportedly also increased over the same three-month period. In January-March 2016, Tajikistan has exported 36,100 tons of primary aluminum, which was 43.6 percent or 11,000 tons more than in the same period last year.
Last year, TALCO increased its output of primary aluminum — the first increase in seven years — to 139,000 tons, up from 125,000 tons a year earlier.
Tajikistan’s aluminum export last year reportedly reached nearly 131,000 tons, which was 6,000 tons more compared to 2014.
We will recall that World Bank’s
Tajikistan Economic Update, No 2, Fall 2015
notes that TALCO plans to double production within the next two years.
Over the next two years TALCO will attempt to expand its annual production capacity to 270,000 tons in anticipation of a moderate increase in global aluminum prices, the World Bank’s report said.
Meanwhile,
EurasiaNet.org
reports the company it has had to lay off 607 employees, equivalent to 7 percent of the entire workforce, because of low global prices for its product.
Reuters
news agency on April 19 cited TALCO press secretary Igor Sattarov as saying that 8,200 workers would be left at the company after the cutback.
International aluminum prices are currently hovering around $1,600 per ton, which marks something of a recovery from the lows seen last year, but still falls short of a figure that would make TALCO seriously profitable,
EurasiaNet.org
says.
