Vimetco To Expand Chinese Aluminum Capacity To 750,000 Tons

LONDON (Dow Jones)-Netherlands-based aluminum producer Vimetco NV (VICO.LN) said it is in negotiations to acquire a bauxite mine in West Africa as the company seeks to become raw material independent, the chief executive said Tuesday.

"As part of our upstream integration, we are evaluating a bauxite mine in West Africa," CEO Christian Wuest told Dow Jones Newswires. "We are in negotiations."

He said the company is exploring options in West Africa and also India.

Vimetco is currently expanding its aluminum production capacity in China and Romania. It aims to expand its Chinese operations to an annual 750,000 ton capacity and an overall capacity "in excess" of 1 million tons by the end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009, Wuest said.

Vimetco said Tuesday that primary aluminum production in 2007 reached 567,000 tons through its operations in Romania and China, up from 2006 output of 445,000 tons. The company started aluminum output when it took over the operations developed from the privatization of state-owned Romanian companies in 2005.