Japanese group Mitsubishi is making a foray into bauxite mining – a raw material of aluminium – with a deal to buy a stake in an undeveloped bauxite mine in Queensland, Australia.
Mitsubishi announced on Thursday that it would buy a 30% interest in the Aurukun bauxite project from global miner Glencore, which in 2015 won a bid to assess the feasibility of developing the resource.
The project, in Cape York could produce eight-million tonnes a year of washed and screened bauxite over a mine life of more than 20 years. If successful, the mine is expected to employ up to 300 people during the two-year construction phase, with an average operational workforce of around 400 people based on current project planning.
Mitsubishi stated that a final investment decision on development of the mine could be made next year.
Bauxite is the primary ore from which aluminium, a widely used metal in a range of industries, is extracted. Mitsubishi said that it expected demand for aluminium to continue to rise in the mid to long term, pointing to the metal’s lightweight properties and its ability to be endlessly recycled.