Hanna

St Ann Jamaica Bauxite Partners (SAJBP) is to undergo a name change, following Noranda Aluminum's acquisition of shares previously held by Century Aluminum a month ago.

The acquisition gave Noranda 49 per cent shares and management responsibility of the bauxite entity.

A spokesperson at SAJBP told The Gleaner on Saturday that the company was accepting ideas for a possible new name.

"It's quite possible we will have a name change as the company is now accepting logos from employees," the spokesperson said.

The company has also reverted to its 40-hour workweek for its 580-strong workforce as it aims to boost production by 25 per cent beginning within a three-month period.

Earlier this year, in streamlining its operations as the economic crisis took a hold of the industry, SAJBP made several positions redundant and cut the work time of remaining employees by three days per month.

Export figure

In making the announcement of the acquisition of shares and plans for a bauxite production boost on September 2, SAJBP president Larry Holley said the export figure for the next 12 months would be 4.2 million tonnes, up from the initial projection of 3.1 million.

Increase in production to meet the new target, he said, would begin in three months, meaning at the start of December.

A source at SAJBP said that, while the current production level could not be confirmed, the company was on target to meet the 90-day deadline to increase production to the required level in order to meet the new target.

"Everything is in order, things are moving smoothly," the source said.

Meanwhile, efforts to get an update on the proposed reintroduction of bauxite mining in South East St Ann, proved unsuccessful.

Feasibility study

It was announced over a year ago that a feasibility study was being done for Mincenco, a holding company comprising China Minmetals, Century Aluminum, and the Jamaican government, to mine bauxite in the constituency, covering areas such as Moneague, Lumsden, Lydford, Golden Grove, Claremont, Higgins Town and Colegate.

Last year, at a community meeting in Claremont, Member of Parliament for South East St Ann, Lisa Hanna, told residents, some of whom had voiced concerns about the negative environmental impact the project would have on the area, that only a prospecting licence was granted.

Hanna told The Gleaner last week that there was no new development and she was still awaiting an update on the project from the Ministry of Mining.