
Metro Mining Limited has shown confidence about 2021 as its production has resumed at Bauxite Hills Mine after the northern Australia wet season. Metro Mining managing director Simon Finniss said that after a tricky 2020 when the bauxite markets experienced a dent due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we aim at supplying around 2.3 million wet metric tonnes (WMT) of bauxite to Xinfa in the immediate future.

Mr Finniss said: “Trading conditions across the aluminium supply chain in China have stabilised and we foresee steady improvement during 2021, which we are hopeful will have a positive impact on bauxite demand and pricing.”
Finniss also stated about an ongoing negotiation on a particular long-term contract, which if become successful, will begin in 2022 and extend over a five-year period.
Metro Mining chairman Stephen Everett outlined the company’s strong financial position as a result of good operational performance and cash flow in 2020, which he said had been delivered early in the year.
“The market appears to be recovering and our marketing efforts are continuing as aggressively as possible given ongoing travel restrictions,” said Everett.
Metro’s stage-two expansion has remained a core strategy for the long-term development of Bauxite Hills. But decisions to be taken based on the outlook for global growth and long-term offtake agreements with customers. The most essential part of the stage-two expansion is the construction and mobilisation of a floating terminal that will facilitate loading of larger ocean-going vessels.
As far as financing is concerned, Metro received an offer for a loan facility of up to $47.5 million from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) in April 2020.
Negotiations are progressing for further spot and long-term offtake agreements to ensure a smooth operation of Bauxite Hills in 2021 and planned expansion of production to an annual rate of 6 million WMT. Negotiations include a pricing structure linked to the prevailing bauxite market price.
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