(Yicai Global) Dec. 3 -- Non-ferrous metal processor Xinjiang Joinworld plans to invest USD831 million to build an aluminum oxide plant in the Republic of Guinea as it looks to enhance the industry in the African nation, which holds more aluminum ore than any other country.

The Urumqi-based firm will build the factory at the Cap Verga Industrial Zone in the coastal town of Boffa, it said in a statement yesterday. It will put up USD240 million of its own money and seek the remainder through loans and by introducing investors, it added.

Guinea has the biggest bauxite resources in the world, with about 29 billion tons of the aluminum ore, the statement said. As the country is fairly undeveloped, improving the aluminum processing sector could be a big step forward for Guinea's industrialization and may attract great support from the local government, Joinworld added.

Guinea has already approved the plan and offered a string of preferential tax policies, such as an exemption from tax on imported raw materials during construction, it continued. The firm will still need to register the investment with Chinese authorities.

Construction is scheduled to take two and a half years and Joinworld expects the plant to have a 27 year lifespan, with average annual sales of around USD378 million and profit of USD69 million.

Editor: James Boynton