International Responsible Business Conduct (IRBC) has completed a project examining aluminium and bauxite supply chains to improve transparency and traceability in materials supporting the renewable energy transition. The project brought together wind energy company Siemens Gamesa, Dutch cable manufacturer TKF, Digital Product Passport (DPP) technology provider Minespider, and project partner Responsible Trade. The initiative mapped selected upstream aluminium and bauxite supply chains and tested secure DPPs to organise and present traceability and sustainability information across multiple supplier tiers. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: " Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price...
Mount Ridley Mines has reported 94.9 per cent gallium recovery from a third-party bauxite sample using its patent-pending Selectro process, alongside recoveries of 92 per cent aluminium and 97 per cent iron in a single low-temperature leach. The test also produced a silica-rich residue instead of conventional red mud, highlighting the technology’s potential to recover multiple metals from bauxite through one processing route. The sample was provided by Australian Silica Quartz Group from its Darling Range bauxite project in Western Australia. It comprised material collected from 16 vacuum drill samples across four holes at the Athena and Ceres prospects. Containing 80 parts per million of gallium, the sample yielded an extraction rate of 94.9 per cent into solution. Mount Ridley said this...
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The Australian mining and exploration company Metro Mining Limited has revealed that it has entered into a facility agreement with US-based resource project financier Nebari Holdings' Nebari Natural Resources Credit Fund I, LP and Nebari Natural Resources Credit Fund II, LP for a Financing Facility of up to US$30 million (Financing Facility). Proceeds from the Financing Facility allow funding to expand the Company's 100 per cent owned and operating Bauxite Hills Mine in Western Cape York, Queensland. A drawdown notice has been submitted for US$20 million (A$30 million), with a further US$10 million (A$15 million) available subject to meeting certain conditions precedent. However, there are no principal repayments for the first twenty-four months, and Metro can capitalise on the first six...
Guinea Bauxite Company, the miner of the world’s largest bauxite reserves, signed a supply contract with British Steel for steel railway sleepers. British Steel has announced that it has won its largest-ever order for rail sleepers with a significant export deal for West Africa. In accordance with the agreement, 244,000 steel sleepers will be exported to Guinea, where they will be used to modernise a railway line at a bauxite mine. British Steel claimed that its steel sleepers, produced at its Scunthorpe plant, were 100 per cent recyclable and offered track operators a more dependable and affordable solution. Steel sleepers are more robust and long-lasting than wooden sleepers, which are typically utilised in African locations. The steel company’s contract with the Guinea Bauxite Company...
The United States crude and dried bauxite imports stood highest in the fourth quarter of 2022 than all the prior quarters, found the US Census Bureau in its latest survey. The country imported 757,000 tonnes of bauxite in Q4, significantly up by 13.15 per cent or 88,000 tonnes from 669,000 tonnes in Q3 . In Q1 and Q2, the United States bauxite import volume was 736,000 tonnes and 644,000 tonnes, respectively. However, despite the Q-o-Q hike, the US bauxite imports in Q4 edged an annual downfall of 3.44 per cent or 27,000 tonnes from 784,000 tonnes . In the entire year of 2022, the United States imported 2.80 million tonnes of crude and dried bauxite – 9.39 per cent less than 3.09 million tonnes a year ago. The year-on-year fall extended as the import volume in 2021 stood 2.83 per cent...
The Joko Widodo lead Indonesian government affirms that bauxite export would be prohibited from June this year. It is prepared to cope with the repercussions, including handling World Trade Organization (WTO) concerns from other nations. Bara Krishna Hasibuan, the Indonesian Trade Ministry's special staff for international trade agreements, said, "The government would not back down on the ban plan . As is known, China is Indonesia's largest export market for bauxite ore, meaning that both countries will likely go head-to-head in a WTO dispute settlement." He added, "President Jokowi said he was ready for the consequences. The Trade Ministry is also prepared to deal with any WTO dispute." However, prohibiting bauxite exports will significantly impact China, as bauxite ore exports to China...
Mundra Aluminium Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Enterprises incorporated in December 2021, is selected as the preferred bidder for the Kutrumali bauxite block by the Odisha government. The news came after the company received a letter of intent dated February 27, 2023, from the Odisha government regarding the mineral block in Odisha. Adani Enterprises said in an exchange filing, "We are pleased to inform that based on the outcome of the auction proceedings, Mundra Aluminium has been declared the "preferred bidder" and subsequently, a Letter of Intent dated February 27 has been issued by the Government of Odisha in respect of the following mineral block in Odisha." Following the news, shares of Adani Enterprises, the flagship company of Adani Group, soared 12 per cent to INR...
Following years of planning and investment, Metalcorp Group S.A., a global service provider for acquiring, producing, mining, and selling metals and minerals, announced the first commercial shipment of 160,000 tonnes of bauxite in Guinea. This was carried out under the chairmanship of Mr Karamoko Soumah, General Inspector of the Ministry of Mines and Geology in Guinea. The bauxite is produced by Société des Bauxites de Guinée (SBG), a subsidiary of Metalcorp, in its own mine in the Guinean town of Garafiri and shipped using equipment built for that purpose. The approved port facility in the Konta area immediately loads the bauxite into barges that transport it to a transhipment vessel, where it is finished loading before being transferred to a Cape Size freighter bound for a Chinese...
The Chinese aluminium producer Tianshan Aluminium Group, located in Shihezi, a sub-prefecture-level city in Northern Xinjiang, announced its plan to procure three bauxite mines in Indonesia for USD$30.3 million. On February 23, 2023, the Chinese company engaged in comprehensive aluminium production and sales, Tianshan Aluminum’s units, signed a deal to buy Inti Tambang Makmur and obtain the mining rights of three Indonesian mines with a total of over 30 million dry metric tonnes of bauxite. However, according to the previous announcements, negotiations between the two parties were initiated in August 2021, when they inked a cooperation intention agreement. Tianshan Aluminum stated that acquiring the Indonesian bauxite projects is the Chinese aluminium company's first overseas expansion....
In Western Australia, Alcoa will reduce alumina production for two years before the state government permits them to expand bauxite mining at jarrah forests close to Perth's largest drinking water dam. Mike Ferraro, the CEO of Alumina Limited, said, "Once Alcoa could mine the Myara North area, the quantity and quality of bauxite supplied to two of its WA alumina refineries would need to be increased for them to operate at full capacity." Myara North stretches from Jarrahdale to the northern edge of the Serpentine Dam, which supplies 18% of Perth's water, and east to Albany Highway. The sole asset of the $4.4 billion Melbourne-based company is a 40% stake in the joint venture Alcoa World Alumina and Chemicals, which US-based Alcoa runs. Owning the expansive Huntly mine area in Western...
On Tuesday, February 21, Aluminium Stewardship Initiative announced that Mineração Rio do Norte (MRN) has received ASI Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard V1 (2017) Certification for the planning, mining, transport, processing, and river transportation of bauxite, as well as power generation, at the MRN site in Porto Trombetas, Brazil. In January 2022, the facility received ASI Performance Standard V2 (2017) Certification. With an annual production of approximately 12 million tonnes, the firm is the largest Brazilian producer and exporter of bauxite. For Guido Germani, CEO of MRN, certification means that the firm will continue to monitor market and societal shifts in addition to the fundamentals of sustainable growth in the Amazon Rainforest. "We are in continuous search for the best...
On February 16, 2023, the Prime Minister of Guinea, Dr Bernard Goumou, was precisely in Koumbia to launch a significant bauxite project. On this other trip to the Boké region, Dr Bernard Goumou was accompanied by Moussa Magassouba, the Minister of Mines and Geology. The Prime Minister and mining minister launched the development phase of the Koumbia bauxite project in conjunction with local populations. As part of the Alliance Mining Commodities (AMC) project, it is estimated to cost one billion dollars. The Project is located in the Gaoual prefecture of the Boké region of the Republic of Guinea , West Africa. The Koumbia mine is located approximately 220 kilometres north of Conakry, Guinea's capital, and 130 kilometres north of the port of Kamsar. The Koumbia mining concession spans 728...
On Wednesday, Vedanta Ltd. announced that it was selected as the preferred bidder for an Odisha bauxite block. Vedanta has been named the preferred bidder for the Sijimali Bauxite Block, located in the Rayagada and Kalahandi districts of Odisha, under the mineral block auction held by the Government of Odisha, the mining firm stated in an exchange filing. Given its size, location, and bauxite grade, the project is a strategic match for Vedanta , according to the business, which also noted that the block has an estimated 311 million tonnes of bauxite deposits. The districts of Rayagada and Kalahandi in the state of Odisha contain the Sijimali bauxite bock. Following the company's announcement that it has been selected as the preferred bidder for the Sijimali bauxite block, Vedanta saw a...
On February 9, 2023, the National Employment Fund (NEF) and the Australian mining company Canyon Resources' Cameroonian subsidiary Camalco engaged in developing the project to explore the Minim Martap bauxite deposit in the Adamaoua region, inked a partnership agreement in Yaoundé. André Henry, the Director General of Camalco, said, "We intend to be close to the NEF so that precisely when we want to start the work and hire, we can rely on them to have qualified employees." The NEF will have to provide Camalco with its database of job seekers when the time comes to facilitate the recruitment of skilled labour for the Minim Martap project within the framework of this collaboration. Whenever Camalco's human resources requirements change, the mining operator should contact the NEF. Initially,...
On Monday, February 6, Bahlil Lahadalia, Indonesia's investment minister, stated that the Indonesian government would continue to prioritise downstreaming the sectors of 21 commodities to draw a total investment of US$545.3 billion by 2040. Bauxite, coal, nickel, tin, copper, steel, gold, silver, asphalt, oil, natural gas, coconut, rubber, biofuel, logs, pine resin, shrimp, fish, crab, seaweed, and salt are among the 21 commodities covered by the eight sectors. The eight key sectors are forestry, plantations, marine, fisheries, and the mining, coal, oil, and natural gas industries. "If we can do it (downstreaming) well and we focus on it, it may become one of Indonesia's strategies to transform from a developing into a developed country as well as increase our per capita income from...
The Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) has been charged by the national director of A Rocha Ghana (ARG), Dr Seth Appiah-Kubi, for damaging a section of the Atewa forest through experimental bauxite mining. According to him, the mining carried out was illegal. This is his evidence in a case brought by an environmental NGO and 10 orders that aim to prevent the government from approving any mining operations in the Atewa forest. "They (GIADEC) went ahead to commission a reconnaissance and exploration activity in the forest which was carried out without due legal processes, destroying a part of the forest and these activities are the pre-events for the actual mining," stated Dr Seth. On Monday morning, Dr Appiah-Kubi testified as the first witness in the case. He...
Terra Goyana Mineradora (TGM), one of Brazil's largest producers of bauxite, has joined Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) as its new Production and Transformation member. TGM engages in bauxite mining, processing, selling, and mineral research and development. It contributes 5.5 per cent of the country's total bauxite output, making it one of the biggest producers in Brazil. "Joining the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative is one of the most important steps that the company takes in our journey of continuous improvement considering the environmental, social and governance aspects of our operations," Reinaldo Noronha, the CEO of Terra Goyana Mineradora. The corporation maintains business ties in South America, Europe, and Asia thanks to activities at the mine in Barro Alto, Goiás, and...
Introduction Guinea, a small West African nation with around 14 million population is endowed with 40 billion tonnes of low silica-medium alumina metallurgical grade bauxite resources. Most of the deposits are located within 100 to 150 km of coastline and well-developed river ports. At present Guinea is mining and exporting about 102 million tonnes of high-quality gibbsitic bauxite per annum, dominated by mining and infrastructure companies of China. There is only one alumina refinery in Guinea (Fria), which is being run by RUSAL with a quite low production capacity. Despite having such vast metallurgical grade bauxite resources, the alumina refinery projects are only existing on paper and drawing boards. There is a large potential to set up greenfield alumina refineries in this country....
The Naibulu Mine in Dreketi, Fiji, owned by Xinfa Aurum Exploration, is yet to resume exporting bauxite because of its low-grade issues. Filimoni Vosarogo, Fiji's Minister of Lands and Mineral Resources, said, "The Company is looking for ways to improve quality to resume exports." However, it has been reported that the company has not exported bauxite in nearly four years. Vosarogo added, “The Company is stockpiling for now. It's not up to the quality that is needed for export that is exportable. That's probably why they are collecting at the moment and looking at mixing it with the one they are going to mine in Australia to improve the quality they will export to their primary market." “Currently, the company holds a prospecting licence in Wainunu, Bua. If that progresses to mining,...
The American aluminium major Alcoa has cancelled its plan to stretch bauxite mining in Australia's Northern Jarrah Forest to export unprocessed ore. Consequently, it will conserve its output for its three West Australian alumina refineries. Alcoa's mines in Western Australia produce approximately 36 million tonnes of bauxite per annum to cater for its alumina refineries in Kwinana, Pinjarra, and Wagerup. Alcoa accomplished a pilot mining and exported an additional 2.5 million tonnes of bauxite in 2021. The option of continuing exports was part of a planned expansion of the Huntly mine's footprint that Alcoa submitted to the WA Environmental Protection Authority in mid-2020. On January 23, 2023, a spokeswoman from Alcoa said its top objective was to produce alumina, a feedstock for...
