Fluor Corporation announced today that Guinea Alumina Corporation S.A. has awarded Fluor an engineering and program management consultancy contract for a major bauxite mine in the Boké region of Guinea, Africa. Fluor booked the approximately $700 million contract value into backlog in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Working alongside GAC, Fluor will manage the development of a 12 million-tonne-per-annum bauxite mine, a dedicated export terminal in Port Kamsar and rail and other infrastructure upgrades. The mine, which is scheduled to begin production in 2018, will supply high-quality raw materials for alumina production facilities globally. Fluor successfully completed the feasibility study for GAC in the second quarter of 2016.

“Fluor has worked with GAC since the preliminary phase of the project to develop a customized, capital-efficient design to meet the company’s unique business objectives,” said Rick Koumouris, president of Fluor’s Mining & Metals business. “We will leverage our global expertise in marine structures, port terminals and mineral processing along with our experience in Guinea to deliver innovative design and project execution solutions that improve capital efficiency.”

“Guinea Alumina Corporation, a key investment for Emirates Global Aluminium, will drive significant local growth within Guinea and secure Emirates Global Aluminium’s position upstream in the aluminium chain," said Abdulla Kalban, managing director and chief executive officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, which owns GAC. "We look forward to our continued relationship with Fluor to ensure further cost optimization and ultimately a safe and successful project.”

GAC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emirates Global Aluminium, which is equally owned by Mubadala Development Company and Investment Corporation of Dubai. The project serves as Emirates Global Aluminium’s entry into the global bauxite market.