Bauxite company to develop water bottling plant, distribute premium brand

Jamaica Bauxite Mining Limited, JBM, a state-owned company in the business of port services, landholding and property management, is venturing into the distribution of drinking water, but says its market will be ships that drop anchor in Jamaica and resorts.

The company, which describes itself as having a business mandate, is taking on more commercial activity outside of its core role as a custodian and manager of bauxite lands.

In pursuit of its water business, JBM registered the brand ‘Ochi Alkaline Spring Water’ in May, and is now seeking a consultant to advise it on the operational setup, product development support, supply chain development and certification for a new spring water bottling plant that it plans to develop in Ocho Rios, St Ann.

The size of the investment was not disclosed.

“We want to commercialise our water to the cruise and tourism sector,” said JBM Managing Director Donna Howe.

“We are not planning on retailing the water to take market share from existing brands,” Howe asserted in an interview with the Financial Gleaner. It will be a business to business operation, targeting cruise lines and hotels along the north coast, she said.

The JBM spring water operation will tap supplies from a spring on lands it owns, which is in proximity to its operating base at the Reynolds Pier in Ocho Rios.

The product will be sold as ‘premium water’ due to its high alkaline content from the surrounding limestone. Proponents claim that alkaline water reduces acid levels in the body.

Jamaica Bauxite plans to start marketing its water prior to the upcoming winter tourist season, which kicks off annually in mid-December. It will start with a soft launch but expects the product to gain market traction within a year.

This fiscal year ending March 2024, JBM expects to make a surplus of $14 million from projected revenue of $602 million.

On behalf of the Jamaican government, the company holds a 51 per cent stake in the Discovery Bauxite operation that’s managed by minority partner Concord Resources, the parent company of Atlantic Alumina Gramercy Operations in the United States.

JBM also manages the 274-metre long Reynolds Pier in Ocho Rios, which offers berthing services mainly to sugar and limestone vessels and cruise ships, as well as refuelling and maintenance services.

“Implicit in this mandate is a responsibility to fully utilise owned assets such as the spring to secure value for the Government of Jamaica,” the company said in its tender documents seeking the water plant consultant.

JBM already supplies bulk water to cruise and other ships for over a decade, but without any marketing or advertising. The new project will add scope to that business.

“A lot of cargo and vessels pass through here and pit stop and they buy bulk water, but we have not advertised it and it is low margin,” said Howe. “Now with a premium product we can go up the value chain,” she added.

Asked about the revenue projections from the venture, Howe said only that “it would be lucrative”.

steven.jackson@gleanerjm.com