Portfolio Responsibility for Clarendon Alumina Production Limited transferred from the Ministry of Transport and Mining to the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service

After further consideration of the incorporation process of JAMALCO presently ongoing, Prime Minister Andrew Holness has transferred portfolio responsibility for Clarendon Alumina Production Limited (CAP) from the Ministry of Transport and Mining to the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service.

The Government of Jamaica holds its 45% interest in the JAMALCO refinery through CAP. JAMALCO is a major industrial enterprise that is a leader in Jamaica’s bauxite/alumina sector and makes a substantial contribution to Jamaica’s economy. However, across administrations, the Government of Jamaica has been called upon to provide fiscal resources to CAP due to the unincorporated nature of the JAMALCO joint venture and in response to unfavourable global market conditions. CAP has therefore been a fiscal risk to the Government of Jamaica for a long time and is therefore of macro-critical importance.

CAP and Noble Group, partners in the JAMALCO Joint Venture, have been engaged in a series of important strategic initiatives with respect to JAMALCO. In a spirit of openness and transparency, the Government of Jamaica will seek to bring clarity and resolution to the matters recently raised in the public domain. It is also in the national interest that CAP’s and JAMALCO’s critical strategic initiatives continue without interruption.

The recent fire at JAMALCO which has led to a complete halt of production threatens the momentum of Jamaica’s economic recovery and brings further urgency to these strategic interventions.

It is important that the transformation of JAMALCO to an incorporated joint venture continues without distraction. This will allow for the Government of Jamaica’s interest in JAMALCO to be monetized and for the containment or elimination of the fiscal risk that the current unincorporated structure has posed to Jamaica over a long period of time.

The Ministry of Finance and the Public Service has been providing finance and strategic guidance to the JAMALCO incorporation project, and a number of significant milestones have already been achieved. The transfer of responsibility for CAP to the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service will therefore facilitate strategic continuity with respect to CAP’s and JAMALCO’s critical initiatives.