Aluminum is a lightweight, high tensile, robust (as an alloy) white metal, which is a good conductor of heat and electricity. It is recyclable, corrosion resistant and has a high strength-to-weight ratio. The primary source of the metal is its ore, bauxite. India has large reserves of bauxite and is one of the leading exporters. India ranks fifth in reserves and sixth in the manufacture of alumina (aluminum oxide). The major raw materials used in the manufacture of aluminum include power, calcined petroleum coke (CPC), aluminum fluoride and fuel oil. The per capita consumption of aluminum in India is relatively low (just 0.5 kgs against 16 kgs in the USA).

Aluminum is extracted from metallurgical grade bauxite, of which India has vast reserves. As of 1992, India ranked fifth in the world in terms of bauxite reserves, estimated at more than 2600 million tones However, India has a very small share in the world's production of primary aluminum.  

The production of aluminum involves two steps. First, bauxite is ground, purified and calcined to produce alumina. Following this, alumina is reduced to pure aluminum. About 2.5 tones of bauxite is used to produce one tone of alumina and about two tones of alumina is used to produce one tone of aluminum. The primary aluminum producing companies in the country are Bharat Aluminum Company (BALCO), Korba, Madhya Pradesh; Indian Aluminum Company (INDAL) at Belgaum in Karnataka, Hirakud in Orissa and Alawe in Kerala; Hindustan Aluminum Company (HINDALCO), Renukoot, Uttar Pradesh; Madras Aluminum Company (MALCO), Mettur, Tamilnadu & National Aluminum Company (NALCO), Damanjodi, Orissa. The total production from all these companies was nearly 589 thousand tonnes in 1994-95. 

The Aluminum industry has the largest specific power consumption (more than 16000 kWh per tone of aluminum) in the industrial sector in India and consumes more than 14 % of electricity consumed by the Indian industry. This large power consumption is due to the fact that aluminum is made by an electrolytic process. Metallic Aluminum is produced by the electrolytic reduction of pure alumina in a bath of fused cryolite. This chemical reaction requires a very large amount of energy, which is supplied by electricity. Oxidation of the carbon anode also involves use of electricity. Most aluminum companies in the country have their own captive power plants to ensure a continuous power supply.  

The technologies used in developed countries and in India are similar in process but differ in energy efficiency. Low degree of mechanization and unscientific operating practices in the smelting process are major sources of energy inefficiency that plague the Indian aluminum industry. There have been efforts to reduce specific power consumption. However the industry remains energy inefficient as compared to international standards.