Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp. became the sole owner of Gramercy Alumina LLC and St. Ann Bauxite Ltd. upon the completion of a previously-disclosed agreement with Century Aluminum Co. Gramercy supplies substantially all of the alumina for Noranda’s New Madrid, MO smelter, and St. Ann supplies substantially all of the bauxite requirements for the smelter.
Century Aluminum owned 50% of both Gramercy and St. Ann prior to the sale. Production capacity of alumina and bauxite at Gramercy and St. Ann is approximately 1.2 million metric tons and 4.5 million metric tons, respectively.
"We are pleased to have completed this transaction, which advances our vertical integration strategy," said Noranda president and CEO Layle "Kip" Smith. "Bauxite and alumina are critical raw materials for Noranda, and 100% control of the operating assets in St. Ann and Gramercy provides us security of supply and long-term cost competitiveness for these essential raw materials."
The St. Ann bauxite mine is located in Jamaica. "The support of the Government of Jamaica continues to be critical to the success of St. Ann's operations," added Smith. "We look forward to continuing and strengthening our partnership with the government as we build a sustainable foundation for our integration business in Jamaica."
Noranda also announced that it plans to increase production at both facilities in order to support increased customer demand. "The ramp-up at these sites will support our key constituents, including customers, suppliers, employees, and communities," said president of Gramercy and St. Ann, Larry Holley.