EGA signs deal to supply bauxite

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) on Thursday announced it has signed a three-year agreement to supply China’s Bosai Minerals Group with bauxite ore from the Republic of Guinea.

Under the agreement, EGA will supply Bosai Minerals Group with several million tonnes of bauxite ore each year, with the first shipment expected in January 2022.

EGA has supplied Bosai Minerals Group over one million tonnes of bauxite in 2021 under short-term agreements. Bauxite is the ore from which aluminium is derived.

EGA’s bauxite mining subsidiary Guinea Alumina Corporation made the company the second-biggest supplier in the world last year of bauxite ore to third-party customers. GAC began production in 2019.

Yuan Zhilun, Chairman of Bosai Minerals Group, said, “We welcome EGA as a long-term supplier of bauxite to Bosai Group, and look forward to the reliable supply of Guinean ore over the years ahead to drive our business.” For his part, Abdulnasser bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of EGA, said, “EGA is now a major player in the merchant bauxite market, and our strategy mirrors our approach for cast metal - consistent high quality, reliably supplied, and with a focus on building mutually-beneficial relationships with our customers. We are delighted that Bosai Minerals Group joins a group of long-term EGA bauxite customers that is geographically-balanced in four key regions.”

EGA invested some $1.4 billion in the development of GAC, one of the largest greenfield investments in Guinea in the past 40 years. GAC operates a 690-square kilometre mining concession, located in the northwest of Guinea. Once mined, bauxite is transported to GAC’s port at Kamsar by train using shared rail infrastructure.

EGA operates a transshipment facility in Guinea, enabling its bauxite to be shipped using giant Capesize vessels, lowering shipment costs per tonne.

WAM