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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Noranda Bauxite & Alumina Upgrades And Expands St. James Parish, Louisiana, Refinery

05/22/2017
Noranda Bauxite & Alumina will invest $35 million to expand and upgrade its alumina refinery in St. James Parish, Louisiana. The company also plans to establish its company headquarters at the Gramercy complex.

The plant, built by Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp., has operated in St. James Parish since 1958. It is located on the east bank of the Mississippi River, less than a mile downriver from the Veterans Memorial Bridge. The project is expected to create 65 new direct jobs and retain 395 existing jobs at the refinery.

The project will include the design and installation of equipment to increase the production, storage and shipping capabilities of chemical-grade alumina. Known as CGA, the product is used in many industrial applications, including water treatment, flame retardants, catalysts for oil, gas and petrochemical refining, building materials and insulation.

“These capital improvements represent the largest capital expenditure at Gramercy in more than a decade,” Bauxite & Alumina CEO David D’Addario said. “The projects will not only expand the production capacity for our valued CGA customers and create new jobs for our community, they will help ensure the continuation of this business and its 400-plus jobs by enabling us to operate more efficiently and effectively and with even greater environmental responsibility. We are grateful to Louisiana Economic Development and Governor Edwards for the confidence they have shown in the success of our business as demonstrated by LED’s significant financial support.”

To secure the project, LED offered the company an incentive package that includes the comprehensive solutions of LED FastStart®, the top-ranked state workforce training program in the nation.

LED also offered Noranda a performance-based, forgivable loan of $1 million under the state’s Economic Development Award Program for facility construction and equipment, and a Modernization Tax Credit of $200,000 a year for five years on capital investment for facility upgrades and equipment. The company is expected to utilize the state’s Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption programs.

“The Port of South Louisiana is excited about Noranda’s $35 million investment in St. James Parish within our port district, together with the retention of existing jobs and the new jobs the expansion will create for the River Region community,” said Executive Director Paul Aucoin of the Port of South Louisiana. “We look forward to working with Noranda throughout the process.”

“This is a great opportunity to create new good-paying jobs and to secure hundreds of existing jobs at an industrial mainstay in our River Parishes,” Governor John Bel Edwards said. “Noranda’s new ownership team is committed to the success of its business, and we are pleased to provide strategic assistance to their efforts to modernize and expand their operation in Gramercy.”

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