Message Mer 20 Juil 2011 20:14

Zambia's Mopani Set To Start Mufulira Copper Smelter Upgrade

Industrials
Zambia's Mopani Set To Start Mufulira Copper Smelter Upgrades
By Nicholas Bariyo & contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; 256-75-2624615 bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk

Published July 19, 2011
Zambia's second largest copper and cobalt miner, Mopani Copper Mines, is to start upgrading its ageing Mufulira copper smelter this month following the importation of machinery required for the project, company officials said Tuesday.

A $26 million converter, meant for upgrades to enable the smelter to reduce sulfur emissions, arrived in Zambia over the weekend and its installation is expected to commence next week, a company official told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from the Copperbelt province.

Mopani, a unit of commodity trader Glencore International PLC (GLEN.LN), is installing the new converter as part of its goal to reduce sulfur emissions by 97% in the next four years. The installation is expected to be completed in December. Mopani is also set to install an acid plant at the smelter.

"The arrival of the converter will allow us to proceed with major infrastructure developments which will reduce sulfur emissions at the Mufulira smelter," Mopani Chief Executive Emmanuel Mutati said in a statement.

Mufulira treats concentrates from Mopani Copper Mines units as well as from First Quantum Minerals Ltd.'s (FM.T) Kansanshi Copper Mines in Zambia's North Western province. First Quantum owns a minority stake in Mopani.

Earlier this year Mopani said that it would invest at least $295 million in a new mine shaft at its Nkana division which will extend the lifespan of the mine by 25 years.

Currently, Mopani has the capacity to produce 200,000 tons of copper a year.

Zambia, Africa's largest copper miner by output, is facing a looming shortage of copper treatment facilities as production increases.

Copyright © 2011 Dow Jones Newswires