BHP considering sale of Brazil aluminium stakes

Global miner BHP Billiton has appointed advisers to explore a sale of aluminium assets in Brazil, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.

BHP declined to comment on the report that it was considering selling its stakes in the Alumar aluminium and Mineracao Rio do Norte bauxite joint ventures.

BHP owns 36 percent of the Alumar refinery and 40 per cent of the Alumar smelter, both operated by Alcoa. Mineracao Rio do Norte is 14.8 percent owned by BHP, with several other owners, led by Brazil's Vale, Alcoa and Rio Tinto .

Now is a tough time to be selling aluminium assets, with producers worldwide having slashed output to help support the market and with Rio Tinto still looking to hive off most of its Australia and New Zealand assets.

Rio Tinto flagged last October that it plans to jettison an estimated $8 billion worth of aluminium assets, but it has yet to decide whether to sell the bulk to another operator or spin them off to shareholders.

BHP's nickel and aluminium assets were put together into one division in May to give them more bulk, competing against its biggest earners, iron ore, copper and petroleum.

"Despite the current challenges, BHP Billiton is committed to aluminium and nickel as commodities that may benefit from later phases of economic development in the emerging economies," BHP's chief executive of aluminium, nickel and corporate development, Alberto Calderon, said at the time.