South32 expects to receive federal approval to extend the life of its Australian Worsley Alumina mine and refinery early next year after gaining the support of Western Australia’s environmental minister this week.
The project will enable South32 to unlock more value from the assets, with the refinery now recognised as one of the world’s largest for alumina, according to the group.
Alumina is used in the aluminium smeltering process.
Earlier this year, Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) published an assessment report on the mine life extension project which raised concerns abound its potentially harmful environmental effect.
The EPA recommended that the project be approved subject to certain conditions laid out in its report, but South32 lodged an appeal against this, arguing that several of the proposed conditions would “create significant operating challenges”, and “went beyond reasonable measures for managing environmental risks based on scientific assessment and decades of operating experience”.
This week, however, South32 announced that it had received the support of Western Australia’s environmental minister, who overruled the objections raised by the EPA, agreeing to the amendments proposed by the appeal committee.
Aside from being a positive outcome for Worsley Alumina, South32 said the ruling is consistent with the local government’s greenhouse gas emissions policy for major developments.
“In particular, it is consistent with the Western Australian government’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Policy for Major Projects, with greenhouse gas emissions to be regulated in accordance with the Commonwealth Government Safeguard Mechanism and unnecessary duplication between Commonwealth and State regulation removed,” said the company.
Having gained the minister’s backing, South32 said a detailed assessment of other conditions referred to in his determination was now underway, with state approval expected later this month.
Following this, the company expects to receive federal approval for the mine life extension early next year.
However, much of the material produced at Worsley Alumina gets shipped to South32’s Mozal Aluminium smelter in Mozambique, which continues to be threatened by the country’s escalating civil unrest.
As ongoing protests against Mozambique’s disputed election outcome have affected the transport of raw materials to the smelter, South32 withdrew production guidance for Mozal Aluminium in its latest annual report.
Business Day reported that the group has implemented contingency plans at Mozal Aluminium as the transport of raw materials to the operation is being hit by road blockages.
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