PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Queensland government has temporarily abandoned the development of the Aurukun bauxite deposit, in Cape York, after the remaining bidders failed to impress.

Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jeff Seeney said that after a considered assessment, the government had decided not to accept two existing proposals to develop the Aurukun bauxite deposit, as the benefits for local communities were deemed to be insufficient, and timeframes for delivery of those benefits too long.

“When we came to government, the process of developing these deposits was going nowhere given Labor’s insistence that proponents also build a refinery in Queensland,” Seeney said.

“Our government shifted the focus away from a refinery and instead made the primary goal to deliver benefits to the people of Aurukun.”

In November 2012, the state government opened an expression of interest process inviting proposals from companies interested in developing the bauxite deposits.

“We wanted proponents we could rely on to get this mine up and running in a reasonable timeframe and who could make a long-term commitment to Queensland for the benefit of the traditional owners of Aurukun,” Seeney said.

In April last year, the state government released a shortlist of five bidders to pitch for the Aurukun deposit. The shortlisted bidders were given until September that year to submit their development proposals for the project.

However, mining majors Rio Tinto and Chinalco had withdrawn, while Cape Alumina failed to deliver a bid. That left Australian Indigenous Resources (AIR) and Glencore International to make a play for the asset.

“After carefully considering the proposals, the government is not satisfied that either bid – from the AIR or Glencore International – could deliver what the government had hoped for in a timely manner,” Seeney said.

“We have decided to bring this process to a close and revisit this development opportunity at a later date, rather than take a chance that the objectives might one day be satisfied by one of the proponents.”

The Minister noted that the state government remained interested in developing the resource for the benefit of the local community of Aurukun, adding that its doors remained open to proposals which would develop these resources in a “timely fashion”, and to other resource developments on the Cape that had the potential to deliver economic benefits.