Huntly-Pinjarra Environmental Assessment

Huntly-Pinjarra Environmental Assessment

Alcoa has been operating its bauxite mines and alumina refineries in Western Australia since 1963.

Bauxite is refined into alumina which is then made into aluminium. Aluminium is an increasingly important metal due to its strength, light weight and ability to be infinitely recycled. 

Aluminium is a key contributor to decarbonisation efforts in Australia and across the globe. Necessary in solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, hospital equipment and a multitude of other items – we continue to rely on aluminium every day.

Our Huntly and Willowdale mines currently supply bauxite to our Pinjarra and Wagerup refineries where it is transformed to alumina – the feedstock for aluminium. 

Combined, our operations employ thousands of people, with a significant portion of our workforce living near the communities where we operate.

Huntly Bauxite Mine and Pinjarra Alumina Refinery Environmental Assessment

We are seeking approval to transition our bauxite mining at Huntly mine to future operating areas and increase alumina production at the Pinjarra Refinery by 5 per cent.

Before these activities can proceed they must first be assessed in accordance with the:

  • State Environmental Protection Act 1986; and
  • Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

The assessment will be undertaken at the highest level – being a Public Environmental Review. This will include a 10-week public comment period which we anticipate will occur in early 2025.

Transitioning to the new mine regions is essential for the continued operation of our Huntly mine and Pinjarra refinery. Around 300 jobs will be created during construction and​ thousands of ongoing local jobs will be sustained.

The assessment process commenced in mid-2020 and is continuing.

Learn more about our project and our commitment to modernise our approvals processes:

  • Project update
  • Approvals process
  • Have your say
  • Documents, links and contacts