[1] Paranam was created in 1938 when Alcoa began building a plant to support new mining areas along the Suriname River.

[1] Built on a former plantation, the facility was called Paranam after the Para and Suriname Rivers which border the mining concession areas.

[4] In 1965, an aluminium smelter was opened in Paranam which operated on the electricity generated by the Afobaka Dam.

[5] The smelter converts bauxite to produce approximately 3,150 metric tons of alumina each day at this location.

[10] Due to the deep water available on the Suriname River, Paranam is a port accessible to oceangoing ships.