英国铝业公司在几内亚博法铝土矿项目进展顺利

英国铝铁公司在几内亚博法铝土矿项目进展顺利

据总部位于南非的《非洲矿业观察报》（Mining Review Africa）6月19日报道，英国ALUFER公司首席执行官 BERNIE PRYOR先生向媒体表示，ALUFER公司在几内亚博法地区的 Bel Air铝土矿前期基础建设项目进展顺利，第一期基建工程计划在今后18个月至24个月内完工，将形成年开采550万吨铝土矿的能力。届时，ALUFER公司将一跃成为对中国出口铝土矿的重要供货商之一。

英国ALUFER公司2016年2月1日与几内亚地矿部签署《采矿权基础协议》，2016年6月，几内亚国民议会审议批准了该协议，2016年7月，几内亚总统孔戴颁布总统令正式批准该协议，自此，几方完成了法定的采矿权审批程序，《采矿权基础协议》正式生效。

英国ALUFER公司在Bel Air的铝土矿已探明储量1.46亿吨，平均氧化铝含量46%。

新闻背景：

英国ALUFER公司在几内亚BOFFA铝矾土矿项目简介

  （一）项目基本背景

ALUFER公司是一家在英国注册的矿业企业，ALUFER在几内亚注册的当地法人公司名称为Bel Air Mining，该公司在几内亚东北部的博法省（BOFFA）获得一处铝矾土矿。

英国ALUFER公司在几内亚的矿区位于：博凯大区（Région de Boké）博法省（Préfecture de Boffa）杜布如县（la sous-préfecture de Doupourou）境内。

距离大西洋出海口15公里，已探明铝矾土矿储量1.46亿吨。

2016年2月1日，英国ALUFER公司与几内亚地矿部签署《采矿权基础协议》。协议的核心条款有:

1、几内亚政府在该项目中占15%干股（不出资），英国ALUFER公司以注资和投资占股85%。

2、在项目启动的前5年，该项目享受一系列的税收减免优惠待遇，例如，免交最低包干税、免交公司盈利税、免交土地税、免交采矿权证税、免交资源税等。

3、ALUFER公司承诺在整个开采期内投资不低于5亿美元；其中，第一期启动阶段基础设施投资1.85亿美元，直接和间接创造当地就业3000人以上。

4、几方承诺，不对该项目采取国家征用、没收、国有化、本土化等措施。

2016年6月3日，几内亚地矿部向几内亚国民议会提交了几内亚政府与英国ALUFER公司签署的铝矾土矿开采权协议文本，地矿部长向国民议会做了有关说明。经过审议，几内亚国民议会批准了该协议。至此，该项目采矿权协议完成了几内亚《矿业法》规定的批准程序。

   （二）基建计划

ALUFER公司计划在大西洋出海口投资建设一个深水码头，能容纳10万吨散装船停靠。修建矿区到码头的15公里长的沥青公路，计划使用矿山运输重型开车将矿石运输到码头，装船、出口。

第一期基建计划2017年初动工、2018年底完成，第二期基建工程计划2019年初动工，2021年完成。

2018-2023年，计划年出口铝矾土矿500万吨，2023年以后提高到1000万吨。出于环保考虑，ALUFER开采方式不采用传统的炸药方式，而采取直接使用大型专用挖掘机挖掘。

据几内亚地矿部官网报道，2017年1月13日，几内亚地矿部长马加苏巴与英国ALUFER矿业公司高管举行工作会谈，就英国ALUFER公司在几内亚博法省（BOFFA）矿区项目启动基础设施建设交换意见。

英国ALUFER公司在几内亚注册成立的几内亚法人企业名为Bel Air Mining SA，根据其计划，该公司将投资1.85亿美元，修建矿区营地、办公区、一条15公里的道路、港口装船设施、各类机械设备等。

2017年2月3日，英国ALUFER矿业公司在几内亚博法省的铝土矿项目举行了基础设施建设开工仪式， 几内亚总统孔戴出席了开工仪式。

驻几内亚使馆经商处

2017年7月2日

Mining Review

19 JUNE 2017

Bullish for Bauxite – Alufer Mining rapidly advances Bel Air project

Independent bauxite exploration and development company Alufer Mining (Alufer) is poised to become a significant bauxite exporter to China when it achieves first commercial production from its Bel Air bauxite project in Guinea within the next 18 to 24 months. Having secured project funding within just seven months of completing the definitive feasibility study, the company is well underway with the early stages of development, CEO BERNIE PRYOR tells CHANTELLE KOTZE.

The medium to long-term demand for bauxite, which is the main commercial mineral from which aluminium oxide is extracted and aluminium is produced, is strong as a result of China’s growth which has continued to drive aluminium demand growth in key sectors including construction, transportation, power, packaging and consumer products. It is this aluminium demand that is driving bauxite growth. Compounded by declining quality of domestic bauxite in China and diminishing global reserves of high quality ore, there is a significant opportunity for high quality Guinean ore (as opposed to expensive yet lower quality Indian and Malaysian ore) and more specifically, Alufer’s Bel Air ore, to enter the market as a premium supply of quality bauxite.

Located in the centre of the coastal belt in Guinea about 15 km from the coast, with a dedicated transport corridor and its own planned export and port facility, the Bel Air project has a 146 Mt resource grading at 46% total aluminium oxide – 40.6% of which is available aluminium oxide and 1.7% reactive silica.

The Bel Air project, which was granted a mining convention on 1 February 2016, was subsequently ratified by Parliament in June 2016 with the Presidential Decree received in July 2016. It was also declared a project of national interest in December 2014. It is strongly backed by the Guinean government and prominent African and mining investors and is positioned to become a significant player within the global bauxite market.

“Owing to our location to the coast and the quality of our bauxite we will have a significantly low capital expenditure and are in the lowest cost quartile of bauxite producers.

“This stands us in good stead in the global market as we will be under the least amount of pressure compared to other high cost operators should pricing of bauxite change,” notes Pryor, adding that the quality of the bauxite, with little to no impurity, puts Alufer in the ‘premium grade bauxite’ producer category.

Comprising a total of six contiguous ore bodies, the project will commence production at a rate of 5.5 Mtpa, potentially ramping up to a 10 Mtpa over a 15 year LOM. The increase in Guinean bauxite production on this scale would increase the country’s total output, currently at around 18 Mt, by more than a quarter.

Alufer Mining has already concluded a six year off -take agreement to market the bauxite product and secure revenue during the ramp-up.

From pit to port

The mine will produce direct shipping ore (unwashed and unprocessed) via an open pit mining method using surface miners.

The material will then be transported via 40 m3 side tipping trucks to the ROM tip, about 11 km away, where the ore will be withdrawn from the ROM bin using two apron feeders (2 000 tph design rate) and conveyed to the ore stockpile.

The ore will be reclaimed from the stockpile by two apron feeders and conveyed along a 1 km jetty to a barge loader (one slewing, telescopic barge loader with a capacity of 2 000 tph) where the ore will be stockpiled and handled via conveyor over a rubble causeway.

The trans-shipment will be handled via self-propelled barges and transhipment vessels to ocean going vessels at the transshipment zone, which is about 32 km off shore, and involves the loading of bauxite onto barges at a barge berth at the end of a causeway and then onto Capesize vessels for shipment.

In realising this mammoth project, Alufer began civil construction of the project infrastructure in February 2017 with the aim of commissioning the project in August 2018.

In terms of additional onshore infrastructure, Alufer Mining will establish a self-contained mine camp area and operations centre at the coast near the mine site – this will comprise an easy to erect, modular, pre-fabricated package system.

The operation will be powered using diesel generators, which will also be established near site, while an export facility area will be established to stockpile ore for transportation.

Alufer will also establish its own quarry to supply core and armour material for the establishment of the rubble mound causeway.

REMOTE ACCOMMODATION SOLUTION

Parkhome Modular Units (PMU), a division of Southey Holdings, was contracted by DRA as the chosen pre-fabricated modular accommodation supplier for their client Alufer Mining’s greenfield project in Bel Air, Guinea. PMU has achieved fantastic growth over the past few years in a difficult market and with the backing of Southey Holdings, one of Africa’s largest and most respected privately owned companies, is well positioned to execute similar projects throughout Africa at very competitive prices whilst maintaining high quality standards. To date the project is on track with occupation anticipated towards the end of the third quarter of 2017.

Fully funded

An international consortium including pan African multilateral development finance institution Africa Finance Corporation (AFC); specialist mining investor Orion Mine Finance (with over US$2.5 billion of assets under management); and mining focused private equity firm Resource Capital Funds (with over US$2.5 billion under management); as well as existing shareholders – provided Alufer with the capital necessary to develop Bel Air.

What makes the US$205 million deal so significant is that it is one of the largest foreign investments in Guinea since the 2014 Ebola crisis – as well as being spearheaded by the AFC, which has spent the last 10 years (since its inception) investing in projects on the continent that stimulate in-country economic growth and development, most specifically in African economies that have suffered conflict and crisis

BAUXITE DEMAND

Bauxite is the principle ore used in aluminium manufacture and, at present, the global demand for aluminium exceeds supply. According to information from the AFC, there is currently a greater than 6% per annum, five year growth forecast for aluminium consumption. This is primarily driven by Chinese demand, which has resulted in increased Chinese aluminium production (which has increased by 400% in the past 15 years) and has led to a rapidly expanding smelting industry with smelting capacity in the order of 50 Mt. In light of the declining quality of domestic bauxite in China as well as diminishing supplies of high-grade ore globally, the AFC believes that given Guinea’s vast bauxite reserves, and given the shifts in supply and demand dynamics, the country is poised to ship high grade bauxite ore to markets such as China to support the growing future demand for aluminium.

Upside potential

Also part of the company’s portfolio, Labé – which is actually Alufer’s original bauxite asset, having been granted its exploration licences in September 2010 – is a very large, high grade and high quality bauxite project.

Located inland in the Guinea highlands, approximately 350 km north-east of Conakry, Labé has a total JORC-compliant resource of 2.5 Bt grading at 43% aluminium oxide.

Within this area, Alufer has identified a well-defined high-grade area of 583 Mt grading at 50% aluminium oxide, with low silica content at 3.2% silica.

The challenge in developing Labé, as is the case with most bulk commodity projects, is its distance from the coast, as well as the investment in high capital infrastructure, which combined makes it all the more challenging to produce a return on investment.

Despite this current challenge, Labé provides a significant growth opportunity for the company.