Yaounde, December 1st: Canadian aluminum giant, general manager of Aluminum Canada, said that Alucam, the company's joint venture in Cameroon, has begun technical and financial research to triple its production capacity at its Edea aluminium smelter. In October 2005, Canadian Aluminum Corporation and the Cameroonian government signed a letter of intent to upgrade and expand their Alucam joint venture and establish a new hydroelectric power station. Alcan Corp. and the Cameroonian government each hold a 46.7% stake in Alucam. The letter of intent required the company to test the quality, quantity and bauxite within two years. Bauxite is the raw material used to produce aluminum. Alucam Managing Director Raphael Titi Manyaka stated in the statement, “The expansion capacity of the Edea plant will increase from 90,000 tons/year to 300,000 tons.†The expansion is mainly to upgrade the existing electrolytic cell and build another one. Pool. It is expected that Alcan's production will increase by 2%, and the annual output will reach 3.5 million tons. Titi Manyaka stated that the smelter expansion and the hydroelectric power plant on the Sanaga River are expected to cost 675 billion CFA francs (1.37 billion U.S. dollars), 30% of which is direct investment in Cameroon. He said, “Alucam hopes to establish economic activities that will contribute to the continued development of the region.†He added that the company will employ local residents during construction and operation. An environmental impact assessment is currently underway to assess its impact on the natural and human environment. Public consultation will be held between December 6-20. Alcan and Cameroon’s government have reached a consensus to develop the project. If the results of the studies are good, Alcan Canada and Cameroon will continue to expand Alucam. The feasibility report for this project may require the government to build Lom Pangar Dam, which will provide electricity for the project and Cameroon. Alcan is also considering investing 2 billion U.S. dollars to build a new smelter in South Africa.