Rio Tinto seeks FIPB nod for aluminium plant in Gujarat

Tag : alumina hydroxide

To exploit growing opportunities in India, worlds largestaluminium producer, Rio Tinto Alcan, will seek the ForeignInvestment Promotion Board (FIPB) nod to set up a 15 million tonneactivated aluminium plant in Gujarat for an unspecified amount.
Rio Tinto Alcan is seeking the FIPB nod for the plant, which willbe set up at the request of the oil refinery customers in thecountry. A new company will be soon set up for the venture, said asource.
The source added that Alcan had already done the feasibility studyin Gujarat even before the merger with Rio Tinto and land hasalready been acquired for the project.
Activated alumina is manufactured from aluminium hydroxide bydehydroxylating it in a way that produces a highly porous material.The compound is used as a desiccant (to keep things dry byabsorbing water from the air) and as a filter of fluoride, arsenicand selenium in drinking water.
Additionally, the company will also seek the FIPB nod to change thecharter of Rio Tinto India Exploration Ltd to include miningactivities in order to mine diamonds from the proposed Bunderproject in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh.
The company has its eyes firmly in the country where it continuesto remain excited on the prospects of mining. Indias rapideconomic expansion has stoked demand for houses, cars andappliances and a resultant increase in demand for iron ore andaluminium.
While the Anglo-Australian mining giant is reviving plans todevelop iron ore mines in Orissa in joint venture with OrissaMining Corporation (OMC), it has recently submitted its Expressionof Interest (EoI) for Coal India Ltds proposal to developunderground mines.
The source said the company had submitted the proposal but did notknow the details of the proposal. The EoI had been submittedbecause the prospect of mining for coking coal was very inviting.
Coal mining per se, has never been a successful business model forthe company and is avoided in most cases. Going ahead the sourcesaid the company will like to venture into bauxite mining and willlike to avoid mining for base metals.
Due to geological reasons base metal mining is not a veryattractive proposal in India, the source said.