Western Australian government green lights Wagerup alumina expansion

The government of Western Australia has granted formal environmental approval for an expansion of the Wagerup alumina refinery.

The expansion at Wagerup, owned by AWAC, would comprise the construction of a third production unit, lifting capacity from around 2.6 million tpy to 4.7 million tpy. AWAC, a joint venture between Alcoa and Alumina Ltd, has not yet formally approved the expansion, not least because of the tortuous proceedings around the plant’s environmental performance.

Feasibility studies are currently underway with a go-ahead decision likely early in 2008, but the environmental sign-off is a major hurdle cleared.