Adds background in paragraphs 5-7, details on Alumina production in paragraph 8
Dec 20 (Reuters) - Australian miner South32 said on Friday that it had received approval from Western Australia's minister of environment to extend the life of its Worsley Alumina operations.
The miner said it expects to secure the federal government's approval for the project in early 2025. South32 owns 86% of Worsley Alumina, which began operations around 40 years ago and is one of the world's biggest alumina refineries.
South32 initiated the environmental approval process with the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority (WA EPA) in 2019, aiming to get the green light to mine more bauxite in the native forest south of Perth.
The environmental in early July approved the proposal for the development of the mine but included a swathe of conditions on mining in the environmentally-sensitive forest area.
South32 then lodged an appeal regarding the EPA's assessment and claimed that some of the proposed conditions would lead to operating challenges.
Last week, the Western Australian minister for environment determined the appeal outcome for the Worsley project. South32 said [https://announcements.asx.com.au/asxpdf/20241213/pdf/06clvj4kgf0y1j.pdf] the minister's determination was a "positive outcome" for Worsley Alumina.
"We are pleased to advise that the Minister has determined after considering available information, that the EPA's assessment and overall conclusion that the project may be implemented, subject to conditions, is reasonable," the company said in a statement last week.
The Perth-headquartered company produced 5.1 million tonnes of alumina in fiscal 2024, according to its annual report, and the commodity contributed to around 19% of the group's annual EBITDA.
(Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Abinaya Vijayaraghavan)
((Rajasik.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com [Rajasik.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com];))
