Alcoa confident China's Citic will support takeover

The takeover bid brightens a difficult year for the WA bauxite mines and alumina refineries that Alcoa and Alumina Limited share under a 60-40 joint venture called AWAC. WA government agencies only gave AWAC approval to continue mining bauxite in the Jarrah forests of the Darling Range after demanding stricter standards to protect the environment and Perth's nearby drinking water dams. The lengthy wait for permission to mine new sections of the Darling Range forced AWAC to temporarily mine very low-grade bauxite from existing tenements and taking a toll on productivity. Mr Oplinger vowed to do better. "There are two…