Aluminium and refractory industries are consuming huge quantities of bauxite in its variousmetallurgical and refractory grades. 250 million tonnes per year are exploited in the world, ofwhich 10 million tonnes belongs to the non-metallurgical grade and will be transformed into 4million tonnes of calcined Bauxite, the raw material used in the manufacture of high-demandrefractory bricks.
The mines that supply the global production of refractory grade bauxite are located in China (95%) and Guyana (5%), placing the European Union in a critical position concerning this raw material. Therefore, Europe is forced to import 0.5 million tonnes of calcined Bauxite per year.