TL;DR
Alurion Resources says an independent Engimind study found its planned road routes from the Amargosa bauxite districts could support haulage up to 11.5 wet million tonnes a year, with no road-capacity constraints identified in the scenarios modelled. The findings will inform a pre-feasibility study targeted for mid-2027; they do not establish that higher-volume exports or port expansion are commercially viable.
Alurion Resources says an independent transport study has found that roads linking its Amargosa bauxite districts in Bahia, Brazil, to the Port of Enseada could handle haulage of up to 11.5 wet million tonnes per year (Mtpa) under the scenarios modelled. The result, reported October 6, supports the company’s planned export route and will feed into a pre-feasibility study, but it does not establish that higher production or port expansion would be commercially viable.
Alurion commissioned Engimind, a transport-engineering consultancy, to assess traffic on the public road network and model truck movements at three annual haulage levels: the Scoping Study base case of 5.75 wet Mtpa, plus 8.6 and 11.5 wet Mtpa. The company said the analysis found acceptable service levels and no modelled road-capacity constraints at any of the three volumes. The top scenario is twice the base case.
The proposed route to Enseada uses the BR-101 federal highway for much of the journey. Alurion puts the distances at approximately 160 kilometres from the North District and 220 kilometres from the Central District. Engimind also assessed fleet and operating configurations, including a preferred seven-axle truck with a gross combination weight of 59 tonnes. Local access-road upgrades and loading terminals in the districts are part of the planned logistics setup; site selection for terminals is under way, according to the company.
The reported road findings cover transport capacity, not the full cost or feasibility of a larger mine and export operation. Alurion says the forthcoming pre-feasibility study, or PFS, will combine the route and fleet work with terminal designs and port configurations. That study is intended to assess the technical and commercial case for increased project scale. The original Scoping Study case is 5 million tonnes a year on a dry basis, equivalent to 5.75 wet Mtpa of road haulage.
Road Capacity Sets the Export Range
The study gives Alurion a defined transport route and fleet basis for evaluating its export plan. If the road system can accommodate more material than the base case, the company can examine whether a larger operation is practical without building a dedicated long-distance rail line for the Enseada route. That finding may broaden the options considered in project planning, but it is not evidence that doubling output would generate an acceptable return.
The distinction matters because the study tests one part of a chain: movement by road. A higher export rate would also require suitable mine production, district loading facilities, port handling and offshore transshipment, as well as investment in equipment and access works. Alurion said it is assessing Enseada configurations that could raise port capacity to up to 13.5 wet Mtpa. Whether those changes can support the road scenarios, and at what cost, remains for engineering and commercial evaluation in the PFS.
The findings may also inform decisions about where to spend on infrastructure. The company said it expects logistics capital to include trucks, district terminals and access-road works, with estimates to be updated during the PFS. Investors and other readers should treat the study as an input to development planning, not a production forecast or confirmation that the project will proceed at any particular scale.
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How the Export Routes Fit
Amargosa is a proposed direct-ship bauxite project in Bahia, with North and Central districts considered in the road assessment. Alurion’s current base case is to transport bauxite directly to Enseada by truck. The independent study measured existing traffic, projected future traffic growth and added project truck movements to test road performance over the modelled operating period. It also simulated haulage cycles and loading-yard operations to examine fleet needs, turnaround times and terminal capacity.
Alongside the Enseada route, the study considered a possible southern connection from the Central District to a proposed FIOL rail load-out. Alurion said that route, less than 90 kilometres from the Central District, could support up to 11.5 wet Mtpa under the assessed conditions. It is a longer-term option, not the current base case: the company said it depends on completion of the FIOL railway and Porto Sul and on securing commercial access. Alurion says the Enseada route can advance independently of that option.
The road study is the first completed workstream in a sequence for the PFS, according to Alurion. The company said drilling, trenching and metallurgical programs are scheduled to start from the fourth quarter of 2026. The completed logistics work is therefore one component of a broader technical assessment rather than a final development decision.
„The study provides independent validation for the road-capacity assumptions in Amargosa’s development planning.“
— Maurício Noronha, chief executive of Alurion Resources
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Costs and Port Capacity Remain Open
The announcement does not provide the study’s full report, detailed traffic assumptions, model results or cost estimates. Its conclusion is limited to the scenarios assessed and to modelled road performance; actual traffic, operating conditions and future road works could affect outcomes. The release also does not give final capital or operating costs for the fleet, loading terminals, local road upgrades or port handling.
It remains unclear whether Enseada can be expanded to the stated 13.5 wet Mtpa capacity, what investment that would require, or whether the port and road systems could operate together at the higher rates on commercially acceptable terms. Nor does the announcement establish a final production schedule, approvals, funding plan or decision to develop Amargosa. The FIOL–Porto Sul option carries separate dependencies: railway and port completion and Alurion obtaining commercial access.
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PFS to Test Scale and Economics
Alurion is targeting completion of the Amargosa pre-feasibility study by mid-2027. The company says the PFS will integrate Engimind’s route and fleet parameters with district terminal designs and work on Enseada port configurations, then assess the technical and commercial case for higher volumes. Engineering work on possible port expansion is being carried out with input from the port operator.
Drilling, trenching and metallurgical programs are scheduled to begin from the fourth quarter of 2026, according to the announcement. Their results, alongside updated infrastructure and cost estimates, will add to the information needed to evaluate the project. Until those studies are reported, the 11.5 wet Mtpa figure should be read as a haulage scenario supported by modelling, not as a confirmed export rate or development decision.
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Key Questions
What did the independent study find?
Alurion says Engimind found that the assessed road routes could support haulage of 5.75, 8.6 and 11.5 wet Mtpa, with acceptable modelled service levels and no road-capacity constraints identified in those scenarios.
Does 11.5 wet Mtpa mean Amargosa will export that amount?
No. It is the highest haulage volume assessed in the road study. The company has not confirmed that the project will produce or export at that rate; the PFS is intended to evaluate feasibility and commercial conditions.
Where would Amargosa’s bauxite be transported?
Alurion’s base case is road haulage to the Port of Enseada, mainly via BR-101. The company also describes a possible future route from the Central District to a proposed FIOL rail load-out.
When is the pre-feasibility study expected?
Alurion is targeting the Amargosa PFS for mid-2027. It says drilling, trenching and metallurgical programs are scheduled to begin from the fourth quarter of 2026.
What is still needed to support higher exports?
The company still needs to evaluate project economics, fleet and terminal costs, access-road work, and the port’s ability to handle higher volumes. The proposed FIOL–Porto Sul alternative also depends on infrastructure completion and commercial access.
Source: primary
