News
03/08/26
Jet engines driving nickel, PQ titanium demand
Jet engines driving nickel, PQ titanium demand
London, 3 August (Argus) — Aircraft engine manufacturing is driving demand for
nickel, nickel-based superalloys and premium-quality (PQ) titanium products, and
requirements will continue to increase as new alloy production capacity is
commissioned, attendees at the recent Farnborough International Airshow told
Argus . Engine original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) significantly increased
deliveries in the first half of 2026, lifting material requirements from
melters, casting foundries and forgers. US-based Aerospace delivered 269
widebody engines in the first half of 2026, up from 222 units a year earlier,
while UK OEM Rolls-Royce delivered 157 widebody units, up from 122 a year
earlier. On the narrowbody market, CFM International — a joint venture between
GE and France's Safran — delivered 1,030 LEAP engines in the same period, from
729 a year prior. Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of US aerospace group RTX,
increased deliveries by 15pc in the second quarter, but did not disclose
shipment totals. Constrained original equipment (OE) engine supply and
aftermarket capacity has been a well-documented bottleneck over the past two
years, but first-half deliveries indicate a shift, attendees said.
Communications from Airbus and Boeing also confirm that engine bottlenecks are
easing, except for Airbus' dispute with Pratt & Whitney over geared turbofan
deliveries for the A320neo. Boeing expects GEnx engine delays to resolve "this
summer", allowing production to rise to 10 jets/month before year end, although
seat certification problems persist. Airbus' limit on the A350 also lies inside
the cabin, with shortages of lavatories, galleys and linings the main constraint
to reaching rate 12 by 2028. Demand for premium-quality titanium billet, used
for engine components, is strong, a distributor told Argus at the airshow. Lead
times for PQ billet have increased, with one supplier in June quoting delivery
in 3-6 months. Two producers also reported strong demand for titanium alloy and
Inconel 718 fasteners, which are closely tied to OEM build rates. Further
upstream, demand for critical high-temperature alloying elements has surged in
the past year, lifting tungsten, rhenium, tantalum, niobium, hafnium and cobalt
prices in conjunction with supply tightness. Alloy capacity expansions to lift
material demand Engine OEMs and specialty alloy producers have made significant
investments in the past year — including several announced at Farnborough — to
expand melting, casting and forging capacity, or to secure existing supply
lines. Expansions have centred on compressor and turbine discs and blades, where
nickel-based superalloys are critical. Alloy producers will require more nickel
and alloying elements as they commission and ramp up new capacity from late
2027-30. Still, alloy producers will need to balance demand for additional
capacity between commercial aerospace and competing end-markets, notably defence
and industrial gas turbines. Texas-based ATI is adding a fifth vacuum induction
melting furnace in Monroe, North Carolina, which will increase capacity by
approximately 8-10pc, or roughly 9,000 t/yr, when it starts up in the second
half of 2027. UK's Doncasters is investing $50mn to build a new superalloy
production facility in Auburn, Alabama, the state's commerce department and
Doncasters announced at the airshow. UK-based Special Melted Products (SMP), a
subsidiary of Italy's Acciai Speciali Cogne, signed two multi-year contracts
with Rolls-Royce worth an estimated $240mn at Farnborough. SMP signed an
agreement with Consarc Engineering for a new 18t VIM furnace, two 20t electro
slag remelting furnaces and two 20t vacuum arc remelting furnaces a few weeks
before the airshow as part of its Project Vulcan expansions, scheduled for
commissioning in 2028. SMP has also acquired a 7,000t forging press from Danieli
Group, which is scheduled to start operations next year. Safran renewed a
contract with French specialty metals company Aubert & Duval for the production
of CFM Leap engine forged parts. Safran is also commissioning a new 30,000t
hydraulic press in Gennevilliers and additional production lines for complex
rotating parts in Le Creusot in 2029, and a new turbine casting facility in
Rennes next year. Melrose-owned GKN continues to invest in its foundry business
— TPC Components — following its 2025 acquisition, to strengthen in-house
superalloy castings production, it said last week. By Samuel Wood Send comments
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