Bauxite sector in Reg. 10 turning around – Bharrat

The future of mining in Guyana, especially at a large-scale level, is bright for Guyana, Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat highlighted on Wednesday.

This is especially so in Region 10 where bauxite has been making a notable turnaround, creating more employment for persons there.

The manganese company, too, in Region One (Barima/Waini), has been upping its production and creating much-needed employment for persons in the region, especially in the Matthew’s Ridge and Port Kaituma sub-district.

Minister Bharrat believes that more persons should capitalise on the opportunities available in the sector.

“I am happy to say that bauxite is turning around, especially in the creation of employment in Region 10.

“We have the major company in Linden investing significantly in their production line and they are poised to increase their production by the end of this year, creating another 200 employments for people in Region 10,” he said.

“So bauxite has always been important to us because it created employment in the Berbice area that was formerly Bermine and it created employment in the Region 10 area, Linmine (the Linden Mining Company), it was once Linmine. So the additional benefits and spin-offs that come with that sector are very critical for Region 10, other than just earning foreign currency through exportation,” Bharrat added.

According to him, the manganese company in Region One has also been producing.

“Unfortunately, the price on the world market hasn’t been too favourable and we have to work with these companies that are engaged in diamond and manganese production. It is important that we keep these companies in Guyana and work with them; incentivise them.”

The company employs almost 200 persons from Region One.