The ships are said to be intended for a long-term charter with Aluminum Corp. of China (Chalco) which is investing around USD 700 million in the construction of Boffa bauxite project in Guinea.
The construction of the first stage of the project was kick started at the end of October, as reported by Reuters, with the initial production from the mine set to start in 2019. During this stage, the ships are expected to move around six million metric tons of bauxite.
Overall, it is estimated that the project will unleash around 730 million metric tons of bauxite reserves.
Under the project, Chalco is also expected to invest heavily in Boffa’s port and transportation infrastructure.
According to WSJ, Cosco plans to order seven ships in the early stage, pushing the ordering tally to up to 25 vessels as the mine’s production ramps up.
中國航運巨頭中遠航運股份有限公司是據說在與同國船廠談判訂購多達25艘船從幾內亞到中國運輸鋁土礦，華爾街日報寫道。
據稱這些船隻將與中國鋁業公司（中國鋁業公司）簽訂長期租約，該公司投資約7億美元在幾內亞Boffa鋁土礦工程。
據路透社報導，該項目第一階段的建設已於10月底啟動，該礦的初始生產將於2019年開始。在此階段，船舶期望運送約600萬公制噸鋁土礦。
總體而言，該項目估計將開發約7.3億公噸的鋁土礦儲量。
根據該項目，預計中國鋁業還將大力投資Boffa的港口和運輸基礎設施。
據華爾街日報稱，中遠集團計劃在早期階段訂購7艘船，隨著礦山的產量增加，訂購總數達到25艘。
Information source: World Maritime News Staff , Image Courtesy: Eurasian Resources
