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Story: Mining and underground resources

Smelting aluminium

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Smelting aluminium

This pot pours molten aluminium at the Tīwai Point smelter, Southland. Aluminium ore (bauxite) is brought from Queensland to be smelted into aluminium.

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New Zealand Aluminium Smelters

by Miles Hewton

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How to cite this page

Simon Nathan, Mining and underground resources – Metals known but not mined, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/9240/smelting-aluminium (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Simon Nathan, published 2 March 2009.