Despite incomplete statistical information, the intel we gathered shows that the annual production capacity of the calcium metal industry in China is currently more than 100,000 tons (of which electrolytic calcium production accounts for close to 20,000 tons). Calcium metal production is mainly taking place in the areas of: Shanxi, Henan, Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, and Shaanxi. The current annual national production output is about 50,000 tons. There are about 30 domestic enterprises in total that produce calcium metal, 5 that produce electrolytic calcium, and 10 that manufacture calcium metal.
So far, the calcium metal market has remained weak. At the beginning of 2015, the price of calcium metal granules was at 19,000 RMB/ton, and then it fell all the way down to 15,000 RMB/ton. At present, the market price of calcium metal granules in China is lingering at 14,500 – 15,000 RMB/ton ex-work, calcium wire is at 16,000 – 16,200 RMB/ton, and calcium block is at 13,200 – 13,500 RMB/ton ex-work.
Recently, there have been large stocks of calcium metal left over unsold, and its demand mainly comes from calcium wire, but calcium wire manufacturers reduced their output, and they are looking for lower cost alternative raw materials, so this has caused conflicts in the supply-and-demand of calcium metal. It has also caused the price of calcium metal to take a further downturn.
China currently has about 200 cored wire enterprises, and over 100 product lines, with a total production capacity of more than 1 million tons, mostly concentrated in metallurgy and refractory companies. These are spread out all throughout China (ex: Hebei, Tianjin, Henan, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Shanxi).
In recent years, the Chinese cored wired enterprises’ capacity utilization rate has been rather low. The highest capacity use is up to 70%, the lowest is down to 25%. Manufacturers mainly focus on maintaining longtime clients rather than expanding their client base. They only produce as the orders require, they do not dare to overstock any inventory.
Cored wire production companies have told us: the current market situation is just normal production