Chalco plans to build Indonesian plant

China’s biggest aluminum producer is aiming to tap bauxite resources and build processing plants in Indonesia following the country’s curb on exports, Bloomberg reported. Aluminum Corp of China (ACH.NYSE, 601600.SH, 2600.HKG) plans to build an alumina facility in Indonesia with a capacity of 1 million metric tons a year. Luo Jianchun, president of the company, said in late November that Chalco was still doing a feasibility study and that the earliest completion date for this project would be 2014-2015. Luo did not clarify the project’s cost. Indonesia banned exports of some mineral ores in May. License holders planning to build local processing plants are exempt from the regulation, though their shipments are subject to 20% tax. In 2011, Indonesia supplied China with 80% of its total bauxite imports, customs data showed.