Vietnam will reinforce alumina processing and invest in aluminum plants after 2010, when the infrastructure at bauxite ore mines is improved and the local power price is reasonable, according to the Ministry of Industry.
To effectively develop aluminum industry, the power price for the industry must stand at 3-3.5 US cents per kWh, compared to Vietnam’s current level of 5.1 US cents per one kWh of electricity, the ministry said, adding that one ton of aluminum needs 14,000 kWh of electricity.
Therefore, between now and 2010, Vietnam will only focus on exploiting bauxite ore in central highlands Lam Dong and Dak Nong provinces and producing alumina for export, according to the ministry.
The Vietnam Mineral Corporation (Vimico) will spend around VND7,787 billion (US$493 million) on bauxite exploitation and processing in Lam Dong to produce 600,000 tons of alumina each year. The project is scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2006 and be completed in 2008. Vietnam will have its first alumina plant in 2009.
The ministry also revealed that two more alumina projects are waiting for its approval. One is in Dac Nong province, which is estimated to have total investment capital of US$1.5 billion and will be involved by China. The plant will use ore from 1-5 and Quang Son mines to produce 1-2 million tons of alumina annually. The second project will be 100 per cent invested by BHP Billiton of Australia to explore the Gia Nghia, Bac Gia Nghia, Tuy Duc, Dac Song, and Nhan Co mines in Dac Nong.
The US, Canada, Russia and China, the world’s four biggest alumina importers are now importing 14 million tons of alumina each year, which is then used to produce aluminum, according to the ministry.
Vietnam has more than eight billion tons of bauxite, mostly in the south and central highlands region. Dac Nong province has seven mines with total reserve of 2.7 billion tons.
P.V
Vietnamese
