Metro Mining's may bauxite shipments jump 45% as operations rebound

Stock image for referential purposes only

Metro Mining has reported improved operating performance at its Bauxite Hills Mine in Cape York, North Queensland, after weather-related disruptions affected activity earlier this year.

Bauxite shipments reached 604,000 wet metric tonnes (WMT) in May, an increase of 45 per cent from April. The rise followed the return of the offshore floating terminal Ikamba after completing its statutory dry-dock programme.

The terminal lifted shipping capacity despite undergoing recommissioning works and operating with a single crane while a luffing cylinder replacement was carried out. Higher throughput helped compensate for earlier setbacks, including adverse weather and an eight-day unplanned outage involving the TSA Skardon floating crane barge.

Total shipments for the year to date stood at 1.12 million WMT, 5 per cent lower than the same period in 2025. The company attributed the decline largely to the impact of Tropical Cyclone Narelle during the first part of the year.

Metro Mining also said it had restored the Skardon River shipping channel to its planned operating depth through bed-levelling works, supporting the resumption of normal operations.

On the mining side, year-to-date stripping volumes reached 615,409 bank cubic metres by the end of May, up 165 per cent from a year earlier and the highest result recorded for the period. The work has exposed additional ore needed for upcoming production plans.

The company expects shipment volumes to be concentrated in the second half of the year and has retained its full-year shipment forecast of 6.6 million to 7.1 million WMT.

Check out the forecast of the global bauxite and alumina market till 2036, book the report “Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook”