Prime Minister inspects bauxite mining site

VietNamNet Bridge – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, on August 18, paid a visit to the construction site of the bauxite-aluminum plant in Bao Lam district, the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong. At the construction site, Dung asked the investors and contractors to implement the project at the planned pace so the plant would become operational as designed. Bauxite mining is believed to benefit the country so in 2005, the government approved bauxite mining projects in Vietnam. The plant in Lam Dong is the first project that mines and process alumina-aluminum in the country. The Prime Minister emphasized that this project must be highly effective but safe to the environment to ensure the sustainable development for the Central Highlands. He asked the local authorities to cooperate with the Vietnam Coal and Mineral Group (Vinacomin) to take care of the life of local people who live near where the bauxite plant is built, especially help them find work at this plant. According to experts, Vietnam has around 5.5 billion tones of bauxite, the material to refine aluminum and most of the reserve is in the provinces of the Central Highlands. The alumina plant in Lam Dong is an investment by the Vinacomin Corporation. In the first phase, the plant will mine over 4.3 million tonnes of bauxite and refine 1.6 million tonnes of pure ore annually. source:english.vietnamnet.vn