Noranda plans $35 mln investment for St. James Parish alumina refinery face-lift

<p>New Day Aluminium subsidiary Noranda Bauxite &amp; Alumina is planning to invest US$35 million for expansion and upgradation of an alumina refinery in St. James Parish, CEO David D&rsquo;Addario announced on Friday, May 19. The company having bauxite mining operations in Jamaica also plans to set up its headquarters at the Gramercy complex.</p> <p>The aluminium refinery on the bank of the Mississippi River was built by Kaiser Aluminium &amp; Chemical Corp., and has operated in St. James Parish since 1958.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="vertical-align: middle;" src="http://www.alcircle.com/uploads/images/norandagramercy.jpg" alt="News" width="517" height="292" /></p> <p>The alumina refinery upgradation project will include design and implementation of equipment aimed at enhancing production, storage and transport of chemical-grade alumina.</p> <p>&nbsp;&ldquo;These capital improvements represent the largest capital expenditure at Gramercy in more than a decade,&rdquo; D&rsquo;Addario said in the news release.</p> <p>Chemical-grade alumina, also known as CGA, is used in a wide variety of industrial applications, water treatment, gas and petrochemical refining, flame retardant manufacturing, and building materials and insulation to name a few.</p> <p>{googleAdsense}</p> <p>Louisiana Economic Development (LED) is hopeful about the project resulting in 185 new indirect job creations for a total of 250 new jobs for St. James Parish. The project, LED ensured, will maintain 395 existing jobs at the alumina refinery.</p> <p>&ldquo;The Port of South Louisiana is excited about Noranda&rsquo;s $35 million investment in St. James Parish within our port district, together with the retention of existing jobs and the new jobs the expansion will create for the River Region community,&rdquo; Executive Director Paul Aucoin of the Port of South Louisiana said in a media release.</p>