The LME, which recently won a major court battle about new rules to cut delivery backlogs at warehouses, plans even tougher rules to support a new contract on aluminium premiums, it said in a statement.

Last month, the 137-year old exchange said it would implement reforms on Feb. 1 aimed at easing huge backlogs to withdraw metal from its global warehousing network.

The LME, the world's oldest and biggest market for industrial metals which is now owned by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd, oversees warehouses where companies that buy metals on its futures market can take delivery of quality-assured supplies if needed.

But industrial buyers of aluminium, used in transport and to make beverage cans, have had to wait up to two years to get delivery of metal from some LME warehouses.

The rules the exchange proposed last month aim to cut the queues on all metals down to a maximum of 50 days. For aluminium, however, the LME said it proposed new measures on Friday that would effectively limit any queues to 34 business days at warehouses signed up to store metal for the LME's new aluminium premium contract.

"We are committed to providing an optimal physical delivery network for all our users, and we encourage market participants to share their views," Matthew Chamberlain, LME head of business development, said.

It also plans to require warehouses to deliver out an additional 500 tonnes of aluminium alloys per day.

The consultation will last until Feb. 7.

Source: http://www.alcircle.com/primary_aluminium/newscircle/general/detail/20112/lme-to-further-tighten-warehouse-rules-starts-consultation