(Facility) Tiwai Point Bluff Smelter

Plant in New Zealand with commodity Aluminum, Contained or Metal
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Nearby scientific data
  7. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  8. Mineral rights holdings
  9. Land status
  10. Ownership information
  11. Production statistics
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10280433
MAS/MILS ID 6140451016
Record type Site
Current site name (Facility) Tiwai Point Bluff Smelter
Alternate or previous names Bluff

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Town
Geographic coordinates: 168.21799, -46.35651 (WGS84)
Location accuracy 1000(meters)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

New Zealand(country)

Australia(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country
New Zealand

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Aluminum, Contained or Metal Critical Primary

Nearby scientific data

Town (1) 168.21799, -46.35651

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Processing Plant
Development status Plant
Commodity type Metallic
Significant Yes
Year of first production 1971
Plant type Smelter
Plant subcategory Smelter-Pyrometallurgy

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Minerals Only

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Comalco
    Interest 79.3
    Home office Australia
    Year 1987
  • Type Owner
    Owner Sumitomo
    Interest 20.6
    Home office Japan
    Year 1987
  • Type Operator
    Owner New Zealand (Nz) Aluminium Smelters Ltd
    Home office New Zealand
    Year 1987

Production statistics

  • Year 1980
    Description Pub. Aluminum Metal Production 154000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 154000mt
  • Year 1980
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Pub. Rated Aluminum Metal Capacity 150000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 150000mt
  • Year 1981
    Description Al Metal Production 157000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 157000mt
  • Year 1982
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Increase In Rated Al Metal Capacity 200000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 200000mt
  • Year 1983
    Description Al Metal Production 168000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 168000mt
  • Year 1983
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Increase In Rated Al Metal Capacity 244000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 244000mt
  • Year 1984
    Description Al Metal Production 243000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 243000mt
  • Year 1985
    Description Al Metal Production 244000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 244000mt
  • Year 1986
    Description Al Metal Production 236000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 236000mt
  • Year 1987
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description 1987 Al Study, Est. Alumina Input 478640 Mt/Yr, Alumina Conc
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 478640mt
  • Year 1987
    Description Al Metal Production 248000 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 248000mt
  • Year 1987
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description 1987 Al Study, Est. Al Metal Production 248003 Mt/Yr, Al Metal
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Aluminum, Contained or Metal Aluminum 248003mt

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • THE OPERATORS ARE NZ ALUMINIUM SMELTERS LTD: CAPACITY EXPRESSED IN TERMS OF AL METAL. A $162 MILLION UPGRADE OF THE THREE POTLINES IS ONGOING. WHEN COMPLETED, IT WOULD ADD 32,000 MTPY OUTPUT. $62.1 MILLION TO GO TO INSTALLATION OF NEW CARBON COKING PLANT, IMPROVEMENT IN COMPUTER HARDWARE.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Production

    PLATT'S METALS WEEK, P. 5 (JUNE 27, 1994).

  • Deposit

    AUSTRALIAN MINING, "COMPANIES SUBMIT FOR NEW ZEALAND

  • Deposit

    SMELTER", MAY, 1980, PAGE 34, 35.

  • Deposit

    E&MJ, "AUSTRALIAN ALUMINUM INDUSTDRY: MORE EXPORTS",

  • Deposit

    FEBRUARY, 1972, PAGE 30.

  • Deposit

    E&MJ, NOVEMBER, 1983, PAEG 72.

  • Deposit

    E&MJ, INTERNATIONAL DIRECTORY, 1987-88, PAGE 280.

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE, "AUSTRALASIA - NEW ZEALAND", SEPTEMBER,

  • Deposit

    1974, PAGE 214.

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE, "N.Z. SMELTER SCHEME?", SEPTEMBER 1975.

  • Deposit

    METALS SOURCEBOOK, JAN 29, 1973, "ALUMINUM".

  • Deposit

    BROOK HUNT & ASSOCIATES LTD., ALUMINIUM SMELTER DATA, 1986.

  • Deposit

    PAGE 243; 1988, PAGE 1.149.

  • Deposit

    U.S. BUREAU OF MINES, BRANCH OF NONFEREOUS METALS, "PRIMARY

  • Deposit

    ALUMINUM PLANTS WORLDWIDE", PART I - DETAIL, PAGE 191;

  • Deposit

    PART II - SUMMARY, PAGE 19, DECEMBER 31, 1987.

  • Deposit

    U.S. BUREAU OF MINES, MINERALS AVAILABILITY PROGRAM,

  • Deposit

    "PRIMARY POST-MILL ALUMINUM SMELTING FACILITIES 1983: A

  • Deposit

    DATA BANK", CONTRACT # J0245003, OCTOBER 1, 1985.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit THIS SMELTER MAY ALSO BE KNOWN AS THE "BLUFF AL SMELTER", HOWEVER THE TOWN OF BLUFF, NEW ZEALAND IS LOCATED ABOUT FIVE (5) KILOMETERS SOUTH-SOUTHWEST OF THE SMELTER, AND ITS ASSOCIATED TOWN OF TIWAI, NEW ZEALAND. MILS DATA IN THE "INITIAL YEAR OF PRODUCTION" FIELD IS THE YEAR OF START-UP FOR THIS SMELTER. ALL DATA IS BASED ON THE 1987 ALUMINUM AVAILABILITY AND NET- WORK SUPPLY MODEL STUDY. ALL GRADE IS IN TERMS OF WT PCT CONTAINED ALUMINUM. SMELTER INPUT CAPACITY IS IN MT OF ALUMINA CONCENTRATE. SMELTER OUTPUT CAPACITY IS IN MT OF ALUMINUM METAL PROD. TRANSPORT RECORDS 01 AND 02 ARE GENERAL DATA USED IN THE 1987 ALUMINUM AVAILABILITY STUDY. RECORD 03 IS MORE SPECIFIC, IT WAS USED IN THE NETWORK SUPPLY MODEL STUDY.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 25-MAR-96 Wilburn, David R. U.S. Bureau of Mines

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.