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It was reported that a cable project will be commenced within one month in Hubei Province, China. The project will be located in Shenzhen Industrial Park, Yichang City, and will engage in the manufacturing of 110KV, 220KV and 500KV cables. It is expected to be commissioned within the following 12 months. The project is a joint investment of the Yichang government, Federal Cable Co. and Si Kaite Germany Heavy Machinery Manufacturing Co.

Chinalco Luoyang Copper Co. Ltd., a Chinese high-precision copper plate and strip producer, plans to raise production by 18% y-o-y to 160,000-170,000t in 2011. The expected increase is the result of a capacity expansion through the completion of a 105,000t/y production line. Total capacity now amounts to 210,000t/y, however, production remains suppressed due to ongoing testing at the US$349M new plant in Luoyang City, Central Henan province. In 2010, Chinalco Luoyang Copper Co. Ltd.'s production was 140,000t of copper plate and strip.

It has been reported that Chinese Guangxi Nanguo Copper Co. Ltd.'s 150,000t/y copper smelting project was approved by experts on 10th June 2011. The project will be built in Guangxi-ASEAN Youth Industrial Park in Fusui County of Chongzuo City at a cost of RMB3.6B. However, before development is allowed to proceed, approval is required from the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the People's Republic of China. A decision is expected to be announced in the imminent future.

Chinalco Luoyang Copper Co. Ltd., a leading Chinese semis fabricator, commenced production at its new metal clad sheet manufacturing facility in Luoyang City, Henan Province. The facility, which cost RMB150M, has the capacity to output 20,000t/y of metal clad sheet. Chinalco Luoyang Copper Co. Ltd. has three production lines: the first fabricates copper and copper alloy flat rolled products; the second fabricates copper and copper alloy tube, rod and bar; while the third is used for the manufacture of flat rolled products made from aluminium, magnesium and their alloys.

The first stage of Tianjin Huaruide Copper Semis Company's environmentally friendly copper rod production project has come on stream. A highly efficient continuous casting line has been installed as means of minimising pollution generated by the plant. The 20,000m2 facility is located in Wuging, Tianjin City, and required an investment of RMB50M. Stage two of the project is currently under construction.

Golden Dragon, based in China's Hunan province, opened a new copper tube plant in the city of Monclova, northern Mexico. The investment of the project amounted to US$100 million and represents the biggest Chinese investment ever made in Mexico. The plant covers 200,000m2 and will employ 900 staff. Currently, annual output capacity is 60,000t of copper tube for air conditioners but the plan is to raise that to 120,000t. The new project will benefit from low industrial costs and a competitive exchange rate; it aims to supply the North American and European markets.

Car sales have dropped by 67.1% in Beijing after city authorities imposed a car purchase limit policy at the start of 2011. According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), sales were down from 283,000 vehicles in Q1 2010 to 93,000 in the same period this year, with new cars accounting for 66% of sales. Automotive production is closely linked to copper demand, with the industry having an estimated 6.9% market share of world copper consumption.

Storyline of the disruption that might happen over the coming decade if TaaS (Transport as a Service) becomes a reality. Implications for the oil & gas industry (stranded assets), cities (lots of free space), construction (a boom), grids (no peakers, no market for ancillary services), and of course for the automotive sector.