Message Lun 25 Juil 2011 17:38

$26m converter arrives in Zambia for Mopani smelter upgrade

$26m converter arrives in Zambia for Mopani smelter upgrade

By: Loni Prinsloo
25th July 2011

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) − Zambian copper miner Mopani, a unit of Glencore International, confirmed on Monday that a $26-million converter had arrived safely at its Mufulira site.

The 132 t converter was transported from India, through South Africa and on to Zambia. The company said that the converter and associated equipment would now be installed with completion expected in December this year.

Mopani, in which First Quantum and ZCCM own minority stakes, is upgrading the converter to enable the smelter to reduce sulphur emissions by 97% by 2015.

Mopani's operations consist of four underground mines, a concentrator and a cobalt plant in the town of Kitwe and an underground mine, concentrator, smelter and refinery in the town of Mufulira.

The capacity of the Mufulira copper smelter is being expanded in a phased approach to 870 000 t of concentrate by the end of 2010. The current capacity with the Isa smelt furnace is 650 000 t of concentrate, according to the Glencore website
« L'aventure n'existe pas. Elle est dans l'esprit de celui qui la poursuit, et dès qu'il peut la toucher du doigt, elle s'évanouit pour renaître bien plus loin, sous une autre forme, aux limites de l'imagination. »
( Pierre Mac Orlan )