JISCO set for temporary closure by October
THE Alpart/JISCO bauxite/alumina plant in Nain, St Elizabeth is being prepared for closure, which is expected to commence by October.
The plant will be closed to accommodate a revamping, which is likely to last between 18 and 24 months, affecting almost the full complement of 1,500 workers.
Sources have informed the Jamaica Observer that the new owners, the Chinese industrial group, Jiuquan Iron & Steel (Group) Co Ltd (JISCO), is determined that for the plant to meet its target of two million tons of alumina per annum — up from the current 1.6 million tonnes — it will require a full replacement of basic production equipment. The necessary parts have been lying on the ground at Alpart for several months.
The plant will reopen as a “Chinese-type” alumina plant using liquefied natural gas (LNG) energy in 2020, sources also stated.
Efforts have been made to upgrade the plant and continue production, which has already fallen 50 per cent below costs, but after visiting Jamaica earlier this month, a team from JISCO’s China headquarters are convinced that full closure and revamping are necessary.
The plant was formerly operated as a bauxite refinery joint venture by Kaiser Aluminum, Reynolds Aluminum and, in 1969, Anaconda, exporting 1.65 million tonnes of alumina overseas per year, and earning gross revenues of US$1.3 billion in 2007.
As of 2011, previous partner Hydro divested its 35 per cent stake to Russian firm UC Rusal, which assumed 100 per cent stake in Alpart. However, the plant stopped operating due to the alumina product experiencing a drastic 60 per cent price reversal since July 2008, which lasted some nine years.
In 2016, UC Rusal sold its 100 per cent stake in Alpart to JISCO, which committed to a US$3-billion expansion at Nain. The investment would be made over a three-year period, boosting the plant’s current capacity from 1.65 million metric tons per annum to an output capacity of 2 million metric tons per annum.
Other improvements slated for the facility include a US$500-million, 230-megawatt LNG power plant, a new aluminium foil and stainless steel production facility, a new aluminium sheet plant, and a new welding rod plant.
