Prospects for a Sustainable Aluminum Industry

Abstract

Aluminum has proven itself to be a material that is indispensable for the economic development of modern societies. The past several decades have witnessed a significant increase in the annual global production of bauxite, alumina and primary aluminum. In 1997, annual production reached 123 million tonnes, as illustrated in figure 4-1. The main fields of application for this comparatively young metal are in the construction, packaging and transportation industries. While those countries responsible for the production of bauxite and alumina (the raw materials necessary for primary aluminum production) are mainly found in the southern hemisphere, the majority of aluminum production and further refinement to value-added products continues to take place in the industrialised nations of the northern hemisphere, namely the US, Canada, Japan and Germany. At present, the aluminum industry makes significant contributions to the gross national products of several developing countries, particularly those of Guinea, Guyana and Jamaica. Given the economic dependence of developing countries on the aluminum industry, it can be assumed that primary aluminum production will only continue to increase. Despite increased recycling efforts and resource optimization, the World Bank estimates that global economic growth will lead to a 2.3% average annual increase in demand for primary aluminum for the years 1992 – 2005 (UBA, 1999, p.23). Bauxite is the main raw material used in aluminum production. Its supply is assured for the next several decades, as there are sufficient known occurrences of high-grade bauxite suitable for exploitation. Based on the ratio of proven bauxite reserves to annual production capacity, the current reserves may be expected to last