GUINEA has given companies with an interest in the country’s bauxite sector a month to set down timelines for their development plans, said Bloomberg News.
Citing the West African country’s Mamadi Doumbouya, the leader of a military junta that seized control of the country in September, Bloomberg News said that plans for alumina refineries should be sent down this month.
Alumina is processed from bauxite ore and is then refined further to produce aluminium. The price of aluminium is about 56% higher year-on-year.
“From now, the transformation of raw materials on site becomes unavoidable, it is imperative and there must be no delay,” Doumbouya said in remarks televised late Friday by state-broadcaster Radio Television Guineenne.
Guinea holds the world’s largest reserves of bauxite. A dozen companies including Guinea Alumina Corporation, a unit of Emirates Global Aluminium PJSC, and China-backed Societe Miniere de Boke have proposed setting up refineries, said Bloomberg News.
The government must evaluate these proposals and help facilitate construction of the plants, Doumbouya said.
“Compliance with agreements remains non-negotiable for us and any failure to respect deadlines on refinery construction will result in penalties,” he said.
