On October 5, 2019, Yunnan Xinli, Lomon
Billions’ titanium sponge subsidiary, has produced the first batch of titanium
sponge within its 10,000t/a titanium sponge production line. This is another
big result after the 80kt/a production line of high titanium slag in Wuding
Xinli Titanium Co., Ltd. successfully produced titanium slag and other side
products. The first batch production of titanium sponge will break new ground
in the whole production line process of ilmenite- titanium tetrachloride-
titanium dioxide- titanium sponge- titanium alloy.
Titanium sponge is an essential material to
produce titanium. Titanium products such as titanium ingots and titanium bars
can be created after a process of refining titanium sponge. Furthermore,
titanium sponge can be grated as titanium powder by machine and turn into
titanium alloy power with the combination of other metals. Those titanium
powders are also widely used on the surface of machine facilities and in the
parts of digital meters as well as precision meters.
The past years have witnessed an
increase in production of titanium sponge in China
During the past few years, the global
economy has been rather stable, and therefore the demand of titanium has
increased, especially in the aerospace industry, marine equipment enterprises,
energy and biochemical industry, and the production of titanium sponge in China.
Statistics show that the global designed capacity of titanium sponge is 370
thousand t/a, and in particular, the total designed capacity in China is 190
thousand t/a, accounting for 51% of the global designed capacity. In 2017, the
total capacity of titanium sponge in China is 73 thousand tons, accounting for
36.5% of the global capacity, which is 200 thousand tons.
In the past ten years, titanium sponge
production has increased and reached a plateau. In the recent two years,
limited by factors pertaining to the market, to resources, and to environmental
protection, the production grows slowly, and the price of titanium sponge also
fluctuates.
Multi-industrial increase in titanium
demand in China
Recently, the demand of titanium in several
areas in China has increased. The need for titanium is growing in the aerospace
industry in China. For example, the use of titanium in China’s newly developed
C919 passenger aircraft has reached 9.3%. The sale volume of titanium sponge
has risen from 72,922 tons in 2017 to 75,000 tons in 2018. The sale volume of
Titanium Ingot and that of other titanium products were 74,000 tons and 64,000 tons
in 2018, up from 71,022 tons and 55,404 tons in 2017, which is an increase of
4.19% and 15.5% respectively.
The marine engineering equipment industry
is a newly developing industry in China and titanium alloy is a fundamental
material to develop engineering equipment. It is estimated that China will use
over 50,000 tons of titanium, at a value of USD 1.4 billion (RMB 10 billion),
in ocean engineering in the coming ten to twenty years.
Titanium is also perfect for construction
engineering and it can be used in different types of walls and roofs for
resident houses and building. The use of titanium for walls and roofs account
for 60% and 30% approximately. Also, according to statistics for titanium
market in China, the use of titanium in vehicles is around 100 thousand to 150
thousand tons. The consumption volume in sports and leisure products is 2000t/a
while the consumption volume in other civil markets is 4000t/a.
For more information about China’s titanium
market, please have a look at our monthly newsletter Titanium
Dioxide China Monthly Report.