Guyana’s bauxite industry is gaining renewed international attention, with a new US-backed agreement set to support the expansion of the First Bauxite operation and strengthen Guyana’s role in a critical supply chain for the United States.

The United States Department of War on Friday announced an US$85.5 million equity investment agreement with Strategic Bauxite USA LLC through its Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment programme. The US government funding, together with US$64.5 million in private-sector financing, will support a broader project that includes the acquisition and expansion of the First Bauxite (FBX) mine in Guyana, new calcination facilities, and a brown-fused alumina facility in the United States.

According to the release, this partnership will establish a secure, vertically-integrated U.S. supply chain for refractory-grade bauxite, which is a critical material for national defense and key industrial base sectors.

“Our defense readiness relies on secure, regional access to critical minerals,” said the Honorable Michael Cadenazzi, Assistant Secretary of War for Industrial Base Policy. “This partnership with Strategic Bauxite through the equity funding and analysis provided by the IBAS program ensures that critical materials in the western hemisphere stay in supply chains that protect the United States and its allies.”

The development is a strong indication of the renewed momentum in Guyana’s bauxite industry under the PPP/C government. Since assuming office, the government has consistently sought to attract investment into the country’s mining sector and create greater economic value from its natural resources.

This includes ventures such as the expanded investment by BOSAI Mineral Group in Region Ten.

The government has also moved to reopen bauxite operations along the Berbice River, with preparatory and restoration work expected to begin this year and full production targeted for the end of 2027.

This bauxite deal also demonstrates Guyana’s growing importance as a supplier of critical minerals to the United States. This comes against the backdrop of a broader push to revitalise Guyana’s mining industry, with the government placing greater emphasis on investment, resource development, and the expansion of productive sectors beyond oil and gas.

Refractory-grade bauxite is used to produce high-temperature-resistant materials for steel and aluminium production, energy infrastructure and industrial furnaces, as well as defence and aerospace applications such as heat shields, thermal barriers and turbine engines.

The US Department of War said the wider project is expected, once fully operational, to meet 100 per cent of US demand for refractory bauxite and 100 per cent of US military demand for brown-fused alumina.