Vedanta Aluminium Welcomes India–UK CETA as a Gamechanger for Aluminium Trade
13th August 2025
New Delhi, 13 August 2025: Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest aluminium producer, has welcomed the signing of the India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), terming it a transformative opportunity for the aluminium industry. Mr. Rajiv Kumar, CEO of Vedanta Aluminium, along with Mr. Rajesh Kumar, CEO of BALCO (a Vedanta Aluminium company), represented AAI in a webinar organised by the Ministry of Mines, Government of India.
Chaired by Mr. V.L. Kantha Rao, Secretary, Ministry of Mines, the webinar on “India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and Benefits to the Indian Mineral Sector” saw representatives from key industry bodies including Aluminium Association of India (AAI), Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), Aluminium Secondary Manufacturers Association (ASMA), and Material Recycling Association of India (MRAI) put forward their views on the India-UK CETA.
The webinar highlighted the opportunities under CETA, which will see India cut tariffs on 90% of UK products and the UK ease duties on 99% of Indian exports, which is expected to:
- Lower trade barriers and create new export opportunities.
- Double bilateral trade from $56 billion to $112 billion by 2030.
- Offer zero-duty export access for 99% of India’s exports, promoting “Make in India.”
- Encourage adoption of UK’s expert mining practices, including geological, geophysical, and tunnelling techniques.
Mr V.L. Kantha Rao also offered the Indian Embassy’s support for promoting aluminium sales in the UK through roadshows, signalling strong government-industry collaboration.
Mr. Rajiv Kumar, in his remarks representing AAI, appreciated the signing of the historic treaty. He also highlighted aluminium trade position:
- India produces 4.2 MTPA of primary aluminium and exports 1.6 MTPA of upstream aluminium.
- UK has no primary aluminium production, importing significant quantities to meet demand.
- There is a need to leverage CETA for R&D collaboration and improving product competitiveness.
- Potential threats can arise from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) set for implementation in January 2027, where duty impact could exceed 80% due to Scope 2 emissions. This would nullify the 0% duty market access benefit for India.
“The India–UK CETA is a pathbreaking development that opens unprecedented export opportunities for the Indian aluminium sector. With the accelerating energy transition, aluminium demand is projected to grow by 37% by 2040, driven by sectors such as electric vehicles, solar energy, and transmission and distribution infrastructure. The UK’s lack of primary aluminium production positions Indian manufacturers as key suppliers to this market,” said Mr. Rajiv Kumar, CEO, Vedanta Aluminium.
About Vedanta Limited:
Vedanta Limited, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Limited, is one of the world’s leading Oil & Gas and Metals company with significant operations in Oil & Gas, Zinc, Lead, Silver, Copper, Iron Ore, Steel, and Aluminium & Power across India, South Africa and Namibia. For two decades, Vedanta has been contributing significantly to nation building. Governance and sustainable development are at the core of Vedanta's strategy, with a strong focus on health, safety, and environment. Vedanta has put in place a comprehensive framework to be the ESG leader in the natural resources sector. Vedanta is committed to reducing carbon emissions to zero by 2050 or sooner and has pledged $5 billion over the next 10 years to accelerate the transition to net zero operations. Giving back is in the DNA of Vedanta, which is focused on enhancing the lives of local communities. The company’s flagship social impact program, Nand Ghars, have been set up as model anganwadis focused on eradicating child malnutrition, providing education, healthcare, and empowering women with skill development. Under the aegis of the Anil Agarwal Foundation, the umbrella entity for Vedanta’s social initiatives, the Vedanta group has pledged Rs 5000 crore over the next five years on social impact programmes with a thrust on nutrition, women & child development, healthcare, animal welfare, and grass-root level sports. Vedanta and the group companies have been featured in Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and was conferred Frost & Sullivan Sustainability Awards 2020, Golden Peacock Award for excellence in Corporate Governance 2022 and certified as a Great Place to Work 2022. Vedanta Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange.
For more information, please visit www.vedantalimited.com
About Vedanta Aluminium Business:
Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.37 million tonnes in FY24. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 1st in the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment 2023 world rankings for the aluminium industry, a reflection of its leading sustainable development practices. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.
For more information, please log on to www.vedantaaluminium.com
Follow us on LinkedIN, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Disclaimer:
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “should” or “will.” Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional, and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.
