Mr Zhang Fenghui, a director at the ministry, said that Henan province, which has already closed 700kt of annual capacity, plans to close more in the fourth quarter, bringing the total to 1Mt by the end of the year.
Output would rise early in 2011 as the pressure to save power subsided, he said, but the country would close a further 700kt of capacity.
Mr Zhang said that China’s current smelting capacity was 21.1Mt/y, and another 2.4Mt was under construction, with a further 7Mt planned by 2015, so the total would be 30.5Mt by then.
Source Reuters