Jamaica’s historic shipment of alumina

Jamaica marked a significant milestone with the first-ever export of alumina, a partially refined form of bauxite, signalling the country's growing role in the global aluminum industry. The s/s Trident departed Railway Pier Three with 2,300 tons of the fine white powder, mined from Manchester and processed by Alumina Jamaica Ltd. 

Published Thursday, January 8, 1953

2,300 tons of alumina put in ship going to Norway

Jamaica's red 'dirt,' transformed into a fine white, powder-like granulated sugar, was loaded for export yesterday afternoon. In the blazing sun at Railway Pier Three, alumina, which will be the first partially refined form of bauxite to leave Jamaica, was loaded onto the s/s Trident.

Two thousand three hundred tons of it will increase the draught of the s/s Trident by about six feet over the next four days. From the barren Manchester hillsides, the clean, white powder, packed by Alumina Jamaica Ltd. in stout paper bags, arrived by rail at Pier Three over the past weeks.

In two weeks, the bags, each weighing 100lbs, will reach Halifax, Canada, for transshipment to Norway. Yesterday, the stevedores handled the bags on hand trucks as if they had gold in their charge.

Coal and iron ore were the most recent cargoes of the steamship Trident, now on her first voyage on charter to Saguenay Terminals. The dirty holds were being cleaned out yesterday. Two holds remained dusty, but the alumina, secure from contamination in its bags, was not loaded into them.

The loading process proceeded without fanfare. A handful of representatives from the manufacturing company, Alumina Jamaica Ltd., Kingston Wharves, and the Jamaica Government Railway were present.

From Sprostons, Alumina Jamaica’s agents included Mr. A. Smith; from the J.G.R., Mr. P. Feres; and from Kingston Wharves, Mr. Dudley Ferreira, manager Mr. F.C. Bailey, wharfinger at Pier 3, and Mr. A.D. Cover, supervisor of wharves.

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