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BAUXITE MINING

Guyana's bauxite industry is centered around extensive deposits between the Demerara and Berbice Rivers, primarily operated by the Bauxite Company of Guyana and Bosai Bauxite Company, with alumina being the main product. The industry faces challenges such as market volatility and environmental concerns, while the Jamaican bauxite sector struggles with competition from global producers and reliance on the US market. Solutions include improved technology for managing red mud waste and encouraging foreign investment to enhance production and sustainability.

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16 views2 pages

BAUXITE MINING

Guyana's bauxite industry is centered around extensive deposits between the Demerara and Berbice Rivers, primarily operated by the Bauxite Company of Guyana and Bosai Bauxite Company, with alumina being the main product. The industry faces challenges such as market volatility and environmental concerns, while the Jamaican bauxite sector struggles with competition from global producers and reliance on the US market. Solutions include improved technology for managing red mud waste and encouraging foreign investment to enhance production and sustainability.

Uploaded by

infotechgroup333
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BAUXITE INDUSTRY IN GUYANA

Raw Materials: Guyana’s most important mineral resources are the extensive bauxite deposits between the
Demerara and Berbice Rivers. Currently, the
Bauxite Company of Guyana (BCGI) and Bosai Bauxite Company are the two bauxite companies in the industry
today.

Energy: The power generation plant, machinery, and equipment are powered by fossil fuels kept in a fuel storage
area.

Mining: Bauxite is generally extracted by open-cast mining. - Before mining can commence the land needs to be
cleared of vegetation by bulldozers - The layer under the topsoil is known as the “overburden which comprises
mainly sand, sandy clay, and clay. CAT shovels, eighteen cubic meters hydraulic front, and CAT 992C loaders strip
the overburden to expose the bauxite ore. - The bauxite layer beneath the overburden is broken up using methods
such as blasting, drilling, and ripping with very large bulldozers. Hydraulic backhoes then load the bauxite ore onto
Caterpillar 85-ton haul trucks to be transported to the stockpile.

Transport to the Factory: At the stockpile, the ore is loaded onto trucks, railroad cars, or conveyors and
transported to crushing and washing plants at Linden.
Products: The Bauxite Factory produces alumina (aluminium oxide), which is used to create aluminium metal.
Bauxite is also used to manufacture other industrial products, such as abrasives, cement, and chemicals.

Markets: Refractory “A” Grade Super Calcined Bauxite (RASC), Screened Chemical Grade Bauxite (SCGB),
Cement Grade Bauxite (CGB), Abrasive Grade Bauxite (AGB), and Bauxite Dust are exported to the USA, UK,
Australia, Canada, Germany and other countries in Europe.

Role of Government: This includes:


• Encouraging foreign direct investment and ownership of existing mines
• Encourage value-added production.
• Address the environmental and natural hazard threats posed by previous and ongoing bauxite mining.
• Ensure that existing mines remain open in the face of challenges such as market volatility, internal labour disputes,
and, more recently, aggressive US international trade policy.
• Minimize or avoid the social and economic fallout caused by any closure or contraction of bauxite operations in
Linden, Kwakwani and elsewhere.
BAUXITE MINING IN THE CARIBBEAN
CASE STUDY: JAMAICA

Bauxite is the ore from which aluminum is made. Jamaica contains some of the largest known deposits of bauxite in
the world. The mining areas are located in the western and central parts of the island. After mining, most of the
bauxite is carried to alumina plants where it is refined into alumina. The alumina is carried to export ports by rail.
Most of Jamaica’s bauxite is refined into alumina and the rest is exported unrefined.

Other producers of bauxite in the Caribbean includes: Guyana and Suriname. Other major producers include Brazil,
China and India. Australia is the world’s largest producer of bauxite. The bauxite industry provides job to millions
of people across the world and is a major foreign exchange earner for several countries.

Factors that influence the location of the bauxite industry in Jamaica.


The bauxite plants in Jamaica are located close to the bauxite deposits. The raw material which is bauxite is heavy
and very expensive to transport. Hence the industries are located to the raw material to minimize transportation
costs. The parishes with the largest quantities of bauxite in Jamaica includes St Ann, Manchester, Clarendon, St
Catherine and Trelawny. Jamaica’s bauxite occurs in shallow pockets across the central portions of the island..

Good transportation networks (roads and railways) were built to transport bauxite and the processed alumina to ports
to be exported. The alumina is then exported to nearby markets such as US where it is further processed into
Aluminum. The closeness to the major market in the USA is important as transportation costs are less. Large capital
invested from overseas companies further developed the industry.

Challenges faced/problems of the industry


 Jamaica is finding it more and more difficult to compete with other bauxite producers around the world. Countries
such as China, India, Australia and Guinea have become important bauxite producers. Australia, Brazil and China
have lower-quality bauxite, but cheaper and sometimes more reliable supplies.

 Also, aluminum smelters have been built in Europe, Asia and South America. North America is no longer the
major producer of aluminum.

 Output per worker is lower and their wages are higher than in other countries, therefore, mining bauxite is
expensive. Large international companies use Caribbean bauxite and alumina for their plants in other countries.
Shipping costs are now lower and so transport costs have dropped. This has caused mining costs to become a more
important factor than location near a smelter.

 There is an over-reliance as most countries major market is the USA. If any economic situation should occur in
the country for e.g. if demand is reduced, this would significantly affect the country’s export volume and ultimately
it’s GDP. Reliance on one country is problematic.

 Alumina plants use caustic soda to remove impurities from bauxite. The process produces ‘red mud’, which is
20% solids and 80% liquid. Red mud is dumped in ‘ponds’, covering up to one square km. Caustic soda in the red
mud kill nearby vegetation. In dry weather, crystals form on the surface; when these blow away, they make the air
unpleasant to breathe. If it escapes, contaminated water from red mud ponds can pollute springs and wells.

 Vegetation is destroyed to facilitate the building of roads and railways to transport the bauxite.

 The mining of bauxite requires several equipment such as tractors, trucks, mechanical excavators and conveyor
belts. They are powered by fossil fuel based energy sources particularly gasoline/oil. Whenever these fossil fuels are
burnt they release harmful gases in the air such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.

Solutions
 There has been some progress in dealing with red mud. Improved technology in alumina
plants produces a more concentrated mud. There is less to dispose of. In addition drains underneath red ponds
extract caustic soda, which is recycled in the alumina plant.

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