Votorantim sees room to grow after Alcoa Court

Aluminum manufacturers in the country begin moving to occupy the space left by the American multinational Alcoa, which announced last week a cut from 124 million pounds in its production capacity at two plants operating in Brazil: the oldest, in Poços de Caldas (MG), and one at the Alumar Consortium in São Luís (MA).
Votorantim Metais-CBA, the Votorantim Group, says he is ready to direct all the export which makes today for domestic customers and not let their customers desabastecidos. In addition, the company can expand its offering of primary and recycled metal with production lines optimization (furnaces), between 5% to 10%, Victor Breguncci, commercial Director.
For him, the energy is a strategic factor, as relevant, in the aluminum industry, but not the only point of competitiveness. Said that the VM-CBA overcame the technical problems faced in its factory in 2011. Because of this, had 15% drop in production. "We accept the return of the stability to operate to full capacity," he said.
The company has its traditional and largest primary metal factory and processed products of aluminum in the municipality of Alumínio (SP), little more than 100 km from São Paulo. Created in 1950, today has annual capacity of 475 thousand tons. In Araçariguama (SP), about 50 km from the capital, has the Metalex, specialized recycled aluminum, able to do 30 thousand tons per year.
A factor of competitiveness of the company's own energy generation-around 80%. Electricity has high weight in the cost of primary metal, and may vary from 25% to 50% in Brazil, depending on the fare paid by the energy (if the source is not suitable, in the Brazilian case stays above $ 60 the MW hour), international aluminum price, and verticalization of production level. The VM-CBA goes from bauxite mining to the finished products.
Breguncci ensures that plenty of aluminum products to its customers in the country. "We will seek to minimize the ' gap ' left by the Alcoa offer." According to him, the vocation of VM-CBA is to serve the domestic market.
The company transforms most of the metal manufactures in the two units into finished products such as plates, sheets, rods, profiles and wire and cable. Last year, at the factory of aluminum, produced 455 thousand tons of raw product.
According to Breguncci, this year the VM-CBA is exporting 8%-about 40 thousand tons, only finished products. "We devote this entire volume to the domestic market," said the Executive. In 2009, informed, the CBA's export came to reach 40%. On the domestic market, sells finished products, in addition to billets and plates.
According to figures released by the holding company Votorantim Industrial, last year the VM-CBA commercialized in the country and abroad, 448 thousand tons, volume identical to 2011. According to the report, the company is a leader in the national market of aluminum, with 23% of market share in sales.
The slices of market in the country, according to the Director, vary according to the thread. "We have 40% in the area of packaging, directly more than 25% in the construction sector, with profiles, reaching 50% including the sale of billets, and a good position in transportation," he said. "We want to continue growing in transportation, packaging, construction and consumer goods," he said.
As the Brazilian Aluminum Association (Abal), consumption of processed products of aluminium in Brazil designs 3.7% growth this year, to 1.48 million tons. In 2012, 1.43 million tons were consumed (plates, sheets, extruded/profiles, wires and cables, among others).
The projections to 2013 were to increase more than 5%, but were revised downward due to the lower expansion of GDP in the year and weakening in the segment of wires and cables.
The VM-CBA estimates high higher than the average national consumption, which, in the assessment of Breguncci, will have a growth of 3.5% in the year, pulling out of the calculations the sales of wires and cables, too weak. "This thread should fall 40% due to the fall in orders for electrical and infrastructure projects".
The local market is attacked also by imports of goods processed, much of China. Last year, reached 153 thousand tons. Brazilian exports have been falling year on year and stood at 116 thousand tons.
In the first quarter, Votorantim's aluminum Division had net revenues of r $ 691 million, with profit of only $ 2 million, after a series of negative results. The company suffered a 16% drop in volume sold in the quarter, to 96 thousand tons, compression of prices and costs and the aftermath still technical problems of 2011 on Aluminum factory.
Breguncci admits that price today, around 1,870 ton (primary metal base listing on the London Stock Exchange) is a challenging issue. "In addition, we're very competitive energy factor for being 100% integrated and be logistically well situated in the middle of the Southeast, the great market of the country."
In primary aluminum, VM-CBA has the largest foundry in the country, which accounted for 32% of the volume produced in 2012. Next comes the Albrás (of the Norsk Hydro group), which made 447 thousand tons and exports almost all of that volume to Europe and Japan. Alumar, Alcoa and BHP Billiton, is the third largest, with 402 thousand tons. In Poços de Caldas, Alcoa made 86 thousand. In Ouro Preto (MG), Novelis, which is cutting capacity in the country, reached 46 thousand tons.