170 MINERALS YEARBOOK, 1985 
     WORLD REVIEW 
 
 
 
 World production of bauxite by 23 countries totaled 85 million tons in 1985.
Australia, Brazil, Guinea, and Jamaica, as in 1984, contributed about 68%
of the world total, and these four countries also supplied about 94% of the
U.S. crude and dried metal grade bauxite imports. Three of the world's 25
alumina-producing countries, Australia, the U.S.S.R., and the United States,
accounted for nearly 50% of the 31.9 million tons of alumina produced. 
 In November, members of the International Bauxite Association (IBA) recommended
minimum prices for bauxite and alumina. In 1986, the minimum for metal grade
bauxite was to be 2.5% to 3.5% of a reference price for 99.5% primary aluminum
ingot. The reference market price of metal was to be derived by using an
average of spot prices and long-term prices from West European and U.S. markets.
The minimum price range proposed for cell-grade alumina was 12% to 16% of
the primary ingot price~ 
 Australia.—Despite a sluggish year for the world aluminum industry,
Australia increased bauxite production to 32.4 million tons from 32.2 million
tons the previous year. Alumina production remained at about the same level
as that of 1984. In Queensland, Comalco Ltd. produced 7.6 million tons of
bauxite at its mining operations at Weipa. The calcining units at Weipa operated
at about 86% of capacity, and the company shipped 230,000 tons of calcined
abrasive grade bauxite. Reportedly, Comalco filed for a patent covering a
new synthetic proppant with better physical characteristics than those of
proppants currently produced from calcined bauxite. Queensland Alumina Ltd.
(QAL)—owned by Comalco (30.3%), Kaiser (28.3%), Alcan Australia
Ltd.
(21.4%), and Pechiney (20%)—produced 2.1 million tons of alumina
at
the Gladstone, Queensland, refmery. QAL reduced production in April, but
announced it was restarting the idle third unit during the last quarter of
the year in order to meet commitments. At the Gove, Northern Territory, mine
and refinery of Nabalco Pty. Ltd. (a Swiss Aluminium Ltd. subsidiary), bauxite
production was 5.88 million tons, and alumina production, 1.26 million tons—both
close to the 1984 output. More than one-half of the bauxite mined was locally
processed into alumina. 
 Alcoa of Australia Ltd. announced that alumina production at its 1.4-million-tonper-year
Kwinana refinery in Western Australia would be reduced in the fourth quarter
to an operating rate of about 70% of capacity. Production at the company's
Pinjarra and Wagerup refmeries was not affected, and Alcoa's total production
for the year in Western Australia was 15.1 million tons of bauxite and about
4.6 million tons of alumina. Production by Worsley Alumina Pty. Ltd., owned
by Reynolds Alumina Australia Ltd. (40%), Shell Co. of Australia Ltd. (30%),
BHP Minerals Ltd. (20%), and Kobe Alumina Associates (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
(10%), totaled 3.3 million tons of bauxite and 1.0 million tons of alumina.
The Boddington gold deposit, discovered by the Worsley Alumina group during
development of its bauxite reserves, reportedly could become one of Australia's
major gold mining operations. Initial plans call for the annual production
of more than 5,000 kilograms of gold per year. The company was reported to
be awaiting approval of various permits after having been granted an environmental
permit. 
 Brazil.—The 1985 bauxite production was about 6.7 million tons
for
this country controlling 10% of the world's bauxite reserves. Alumina production
was approximately 1.0 million tons. Shell Brasil S.A. planned to invest $33
million in an expansion of the AlumInio do Maranhão S.A. (ALUMAR)
refinery and primary smelter project at São Luis, in which the
company
held a 29% interest. The two other partners in ALUMAR were Alcoa AlumInio
S.A. and Camargo Correa S.A. Bauxite was supplied to the 500,000-ton-per-year
alumina plant from the Trombetas Mine under a contract with Mineraçao
Rio do Norte S.A. (MRN), a consortium owned 46% by Cia. Vale do Rio Doce
(CVRD) and a group of North American and West European companies. MRN, Brazil's
only exporter of bauxite, produced and shipped an estimated 4.1 million tons
of ore. At yearend, when the $28.50 per ton base price for Trombetas bauxite
was due to expire, the Government, MRN, and its customers were negotiating
to set a new contract price. Also in December, the 32 Japanese companies
holding an interest in the Nippon Amazon Aluminium Co. (NAAC) postponed their
decision for the third time on whether or not to proceed with the