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Bauxite Demand

CAMEC - The DRC's leading copper and cobalt mining company
CAMEC - The DRC's leading copper and cobalt mining company
CAMEC - The DRC's leading copper and cobalt mining company
CAMEC - The DRC's leading copper and cobalt mining company

Bauxite is the primary ore of aluminium, consisting of several different minerals including gibbsite Al(OH)3, boehmite and diaspore AlOOH. Approximately 95% of the world bauxite production is processed into aluminium. Bauxites are typically classified according to their intended commercial application: metallurgical, abrasive, cement, chemical and refractory.

Aluminium has a wide range of common uses. It is lightweight, strong (especially with alloys), and conducts heat well. Many kitchen items (pots and pans, foil, dishes) are made of aluminium. Most materials used for transportation use large amounts of aluminium: cars, trucks, boats, aircraft, and aircraft engines. Road signs and high-voltage power lines are also made mostly of aluminium.

World Resources

There are numerous bauxite deposits, mainly in the tropical and subtropical regions, but also in Europe. Bauxite is generally extracted by open cast mining from strata, typically some 4-6 metres thick under a shallow covering of topsoil and vegetation. Exporting bauxite mines generated about US$1.4m in revenue per hectare mined in 1998 and a typical mine employed about 200 people for each million tonnes/year of bauxite produced or about 11 people per hectare.