First Bauxite opens US$100M Bonasika bauxite mine

2020-03-03

Mar. 3, 2020 - Guyana Industrial Minerals (GINMIN), a subsidiary of United States-based First Bauxite (FBX), commissioned its mine and processing plant at Bonasika, Demerara River, in Region Three in late February, and pledged that the US$100 million investment would be a world-class operation.

The commissioning of the Bonasika project marks a significant achievement for the company, which began operating here in 2008.

“We will gladly admit that we have taken our time to put this mine in operation but as we say today is the day,” FBX Board Chairman Thibault Van Stratum said in brief remarks as he addressed the gathering of workers and special invitees at the commissioning.

When producing at full capacity, the Bonasika Bauxite Project will deliver an annual production of 320,000 metric tonnes of washed bauxite. Tests have shown that the bauxite ore found in the mine is the purest in the world and can be used to develop high level tertiary products for very specialized needs.

Van Stratum noted that within the last year the company has been marketing the ore to potential clients and the signals received so far have been encouraging.

“We are very encouraged about the signals we have been getting from the markets,” Van Stratum said, while pointing out that interest is not only coming from the North American market but also Europe and increasingly from Asia. He said not a week goes by without interest, which he believed sets the foundation for an endless amount of opportunity going forward.

(A view of the bauxite processing plant at Bonasika)

The lifespan of the mine is projected to be between 15 and 17 years, although the company has said other operations will further extend the company’s presence in the country to about 25 years. A total of US$387 million is expected to be injected into the local economy within the estimated 15 years of operation.

Chief Executive Officer Bill Rice also committed to the company operating at the highest international standards.

Rice further said that the company will show respect to all and in doing so it is committed to “giving all the people that work for us opportunities to grow and develop to their full potential. We think that’s one of the areas where we can help them. We can help the country and we can help ourselves by allowing people to learn, to be able to take on new skills, new responsibilities and continue to grow.”

Delivering the feature address, Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman hailed the project and said that foreign investors like FBX can help by bringing much needed technological innovation and investment to develop a qualified local workforce.

Guyana is expected to earn a total of US$49.8 million during the estimated 15 years of operations, including a 3% royalty pegged to work out to be US$6.4 million, a mining licence fee of US$1.42 Million, Employee PAYE (Pay As You Earn) taxes of US$18.95 million, as well as Withholding Tax and Company Tax of US$5.53 million and US$17.47 million, respectively.

At present, there are 95 permanent workers, 130 contracted employees, Human Resources Manager Iana Seales said, while explaining that there are eight expatriates among the workforce.

Additionally the company announced that as a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility, it will spend US$929,000 over the life of the project to enhance the livelihood of the community. Projects under this fund include a contribution to a church fund, electricity reticulation, potable water supply, secondary and university student and scholarship assistance, and sports.