THE proposed Chatham aluminum smelter is going to cost more than half a billion US dollars, most of which will come as a loan from China’s Exim (Export/Import) Bank.

The Chinese also get a lagniappe, in that a core group of some 1,500 of their nationals will journey to Trinidad to help set up the plant.

Those were some of the revelations at last Wednesday’s sitting of the Joint Select Committee (JSC), which continued its barrage of questions into the smelter project.

According to Alutrint Chairman Anthony Chan Tack, the projected cost of the smelter is US$540 million and its operational life will be around 30 years.

That prompted Committee Chair, Independent Senator Mary King to question what was the tit-for-tat in the loan agreement.

However, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy Leroy Mayers said he was not fully updated on any conditions or terms of the loan.

But an Energy Ministry official said that EXIM Bank was chosen because of its low interest rate.

The Alutrint Chairman then went on to explain that one of the operating mandates was for as much local inclusion as possible.

He says there will be permanent employment for 1,050 nationals, while there will be at least 3,000 of short-term vacancies, during the estimated 28-month construction period.

However, during that period half of those vacancies were expected to be occupied by Chinese nationals, in the face of the shortage of skilled labour.

It was revealed that the Chinese are evaluating local contractors to determine their suitability for the project.

Based on their assessment, a number of locals will be selected, along with a complement of Chinese technicians and mechanics.

Some of the reasoning behind that decision is that even though the first smelter will be one of the smaller plants in the world, the technology behind aluminum smelting is somewhat different to the oil and gas industry.

As a result, local firms would not have had sufficient experience to spearhead such a project.

Alutrint Managing Director Renda Butler admits that they have contracted Chinese company Cemec for engineering, procurement and construction.

Responding to inquiries that workers will be imported en masse, Butler said: “We are not going to employ Chinese labour in the operations … all will be Trinidadians.”

But he admits that work permits have already been sought for a handful of Chinese managers to fly to TnT.

“There will of course be support people from China and Venezuela, until the locals can be properly trained.”

That training is set to take place at a new facility to be built at the old Vessigny High School.

Phase two of the training will see mainly operator training.

From there, a core group of operators and managers will be selected to work in smelter facilities in China and Venezuela, after which they will return home to oversee operations at the local plant.