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Two workers at our Worsley operation in uniform walking with machinery in the background.

Worsley Alumina

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We mine bauxite in the south-west of Australia and transport it on an overland conveyor belt to a refinery where the bauxite is turned into white alumina powder. The alumina is then exported to smelters around the world.

Worsley Alumina

Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd
PO Box 344
Collie, 6225 
Western Australia
Australia

Key statistics

3,991 kt

FY22 alumina production

US$120m

local procurement in FY22

US$1.6m

FY22 investment in local communities

Our operations

South32 owns 86 per cent of Worsley Alumina, with 10 per cent held by Japan Alumina Associates (Australia) Pty Ltd and the remaining 4 per cent held by Sojitz Alumina Pty Ltd.

Bauxite is mined near the town of Boddington, 130 kilometres south-east of Perth. It is transported by overland conveyor to the alumina refinery near Collie and turned into alumina powder, before being transported by rail to the Bunbury port.

It is then shipped to smelters around the world, including South32’s Hillside and Mozal aluminium smelters in Southern Africa.

Operations began in 1984 and today Worsley Alumina is recognised as one of the largest alumina refineries in the world.

Partnering with communities

Partnering with communities

As a major employer in the South West and Peel regions of Western Australia, our operations invest more than A$1 million each day into surrounding communities through wages, local businesses and community investment.

In FY22, we invested US$1.6 million in community projects around Worsley Alumina, with a focus on environmental protection and restoration, economic diversification and supporting education and cultural programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.

Learn more about how South32 supports local communities

Our stories

Worsley’s Six Seasons Garden upgraded by Indigenous business, Marawar

Our Worsley Alumina operation's Six Seasons Garden has been given an upgrade by Indigenous-owned construction and maintenance company, Marawar.

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Worsley Alumina donates two firefighting tankers

Worsley Alumina has donated two firefighting tankers to the Wandering Volunteer Bushfire Brigade.

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Worsley partners with Clontarf Foundation in WA

Our Worsley Alumina operation has partnered with the Clontarf Foundation in Western Australia to help improve education, discipline, life skills and employment prospects of young local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men.

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Our commodities

Bauxite

Bauxite

An aluminium ore found in deposits around the world, the red bauxite rock is crushed and refined into a white alumina powder and smelted into aluminium metal.  

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Alumina

Alumina

Alumina is the key raw material used to produce primary aluminium.  

Approximately 60 per cent of the production from our Worsley Alumina operation is shipped to our aluminium smelters in South Africa and Mozambique, with the remainder going into the seaborne market. 

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Worsley Mine Development

We are proposing the next phase of bauxite mining near the town of Boddington, providing access to future reserves and resources to sustain production at our Worsley Alumina refinery near Collie.

Find out more about the proposed development
  • Erwin Schaufler, Vice President of Operations

    Erwin Schaufler

    Vice President Operations, Worsley Alumina

    Erwin joined South32 when we formed in 2015, having been with BHP Billiton since 2007. He began his career with us as General Manager Marketing based in Singapore, before moving to Australia to take up the role of General Manager Operations at Worsley Alumina in 2017.
    Erwin was appointed Vice President Operations of Worsley Alumina in October 2021. With global experience across multiple commodities and countries, Erwin has held senior leadership roles in operations, marketing, supply chain, technology and logistics. Erwin holds a Master of Science in Logistics and Supply Chain from Cranfield University in the United Kingdom, a Master of Business Administration from Vienna University of Economics and Business, and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. 

Contacts

Address: PO Box 344 Collie WA 6225

Liam Stower, External Affairs

Phone: 1800 555 958

It's our future

It's our future

The South West is our home - and together, we work to make it stronger every day.

We care about our environment, our community and our people. We’re minimising impact and rehabilitating the land we work on, spending over a million dollars a day and supporting important initiatives in our local communities and providing secure, flexible employment for thousands of local people.

We’re doing it for the future of the South West – for our future.

 

See stories from our workforce

Related information

Worsley documents

Access and download important Worsley documents.

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Worsley Mine Development

Ensuring access to future reserves and resources to sustain production.

Learn more

It's our future

The South West is our home - and together, we work to make it stronger every day.

Learn more