Bauxite mining in Australia is an economically significant industry both for Australia and globally. The industry focuses on the mining of bauxite, the primary raw material for alumina and aluminium. Australia is the world's largest bauxite producer, producing almost a third of global bauxite. Bauxite is mined in Australia using open-cut mining, which suits the relatively shallow bauxite deposits located mostly in Western Australia and Queensland. Mined bauxite is either exported or refined domestically into alumina. The large majority of domestic bauxite and alumina is exported to China. Australia produced approximately 102 million tonnes of bauxite in the 2018-19 year from seven main bauxite mines generating about $3.3 billion AUD of revenue. Sustainable bauxite mining in Australia is regulated under the Sustainable Bauxite Mining Guidelines. Uses Bauxite is a raw material used primarily in the production of aluminium. The bauxite ore is refined into alumina before being smelted into aluminium. Australia is known for its high-grade ore, especially in the Weipa and Gove deposits. The quality of bauxite ore is determined by its available alumina (Al2O3) content. The presence of impurities, which make the ore more difficult to refine, are taken into consideration when grading ore quality. In 2020, IBISWorld predicted that about 49% of bauxite mined in Australia would be of high quality. One quarter of the total bauxite ore mined in Australia is exported. Almost all of this goes to China. The other three-quarters is refined domestically into alumina using the Bayer process. In 2015, 90% of domestically refined alumina was exported. Mining In Australia, bauxite is mined using an open-cut method. This is possible because most bauxite in Australia can be found at or relatively close to the surface and is easily accessible by this method. Open cut mining involves first removing the area above the bauxite ore called the overburden. Much of the topsoil is stored, conserving seeds, vegetation and soil for rehabilitation when mining operations finish. Once the overburden is cleared, excavators and front-end loaders mine the exposed bauxite ore. It is then loaded into haul trucks which transport the bauxite to storage. The hauled bauxite is then crushed and ground into smaller particles which allow for easy transportation to refineries and exportation. The generally high quality and low level of impurities in Australian bauxite means it does not need heavy processing or treatment. Industry overview Australia has been mining bauxite since the early 1960s