Despite sanctions against Russia by Western countries, deliveries of Russian titanium to leading U.S. and European aerospace companies c...
Despite sanctions against Russia by Western countries, deliveries of Russian titanium to leading U.S. and European aerospace companies continue unhindered.
VSMPO-AVISMO, world's largest titanium producer, producing 45 percent of world aerospace titanium, supplies leading aircraft manufactures like U.S. Boeing, European Airbus and Canadian Bombardier with their fuel and weight saving metal.
VSMPO-AVISMA provides about 40 percent of Boeing’s titanium needs, 60 percent for Airbus, and 100 percent for Brazilian Embraer.
In aircraft manufacturing, titanium is mainly used for making parts undergoing high thermal and load stresses like fuselage sections, wings, landing gear, engine fan blades and compressor blades.
VSMPO-AVISMA started supplying titanium to Boeing in 1993. In 2006, they signed an agreement establishing Ural Boeing Manufacturing, a joint venture in Upper Salda that processes titanium forgings. The $70 million facility began production in 2009 and since then, has regularly increased its production. Boeing plans to buy $18 billion worth titanium from VSMPO, in the coming decade.
VSMPO-AVISMA and Boeing have also established an innovative research center for developing new titanium alloys. In 2013, Boeing signed an agreement for the supply of semi-finished titanium products for the new Boeing 777X aircraft. Titanium is especially important for Boeing, as its best selling and flagship 787 Dreamliner jet, accounts 15 percent of the airframe weight to titanium.
During the height of the sanctions war in last July, the two companies signed a new agreement to extend an existing long-term contract for the supply of titanium forgings until the end of 2022.
Boeing along with United Technologies-which uses titanium to make landing gear and for its engine business Pratt & Whitney, has built a stockpile of titanium products, to avoid delivery delays amid sanctions.
U.S sanctions to date have been targeted at enterprises in the Russian national-military industrial complex that are not in the supply chain of western aerospace companies.
In a scenario of sanctions, the major risks for Western companies would be to find an alternative suppliers to VSMPO-AVSIMA. Replacement suppliers can take months to master and increase the production.
The second issue related to sanctions would be the rising prices. AVISMA is a vertically integrated company which can oversee the entire chain of production from titanium sponge to the machining of forgings and stampings, thus lowering cost.
For example, Ural Boeing Manufacturing, manufactures machined parts both for wings and the chassis. All production happens in the Verkhnyaya Salda, thereby reducing transportation costs.
Another risk for western companies is the lack of critical equipment, such as unique hydraulic press (75 tonne) located only in Russia, to produce special and highly customized forgings.
AVISMA also supplies titanium to Airbus for its A350 XWB, A380 and A320neo airliner programs.
The Cold War experience gave AVISMA knowledge and astounding production capacity that once produced 90,000 tons a year, more than the rest of the world combined in the 1970s.
After the collapse of Soviet Union and as the production of Soviet Alfa class submarines which used titanium in hulls ended, the domestic demand for titanium went down. The factory scaled down its capacities and now makes about 32,000 tons, though of a higher grade.
What makes titanium an excellent candidates for aerospace applications is its high strength to weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance.
Much of the value is created in the smelting of alloys. Pure titanium costs about $7 a pound. But when blended with zirconium, nickel and other alloys for aerospace parts, it can cost more than $150 a pound.
AVISMA also produces parts for Russian military. It produces huge titanium body rings for Bulova missile, Russia’s latest submarine launched intercontinental ballistic missile. But whenever the West has vested interest, as in the case of titanium and rocket engines, exceptions can suddenly materialize.
