World's First Low-Sulfur PGM Smelter to be Built in South Africa

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Braemore Resources Plc (London), through its subsidiary Independence Platinum Limited, plans to play in the major league with the construction of a state-of-the-art Platinum Group Metals (PGM) smelter. Although Independence Platinum will be in the company of Anglo Platinum, Impala Platinum, Lonmin Platinum and Northam Platinum, which are all owners of PGM-processing refineries and smelters in South Africa, it would be in a class of it own because of the technology it intends to use in the new smelter: Mintek's ConRoast technology. The ConRoast PGM smelting process combines the roasting and atomization, as the DC arc furnace runs at 16,000c and dramatically cuts down sulfur dioxide emissions. It is capable of processing high nickel-bearing Platreef, as well as the normal chrome in UG2 PGM.

A booming South African economy fueled by high commodity prices is already creating a headache in the platinum-production sector: a shortage in platinum-processing facilities as evident in the low production of nickel, a by-project of platinum process. Although Lonmin, Impala and Anglo are all set to expand their smelting and refining capacity, the severe processing capacity shortage will persist especially since local platinum mines are also set to increase production capacity from 2.5 million tons to 4 million tons in 2015. At this rate, South Africa would need a new platinum refinery and four new smelters, which would cost more than $1.2 billion. The current PGM-processing technology in South Africa is more than 30 years old and was not designed to process UG2, which is what is being mined nowadays.

This is where Independence Platinum Limited and its ConRoast smelter come in. Set to begin commercial operation by the last quarter of 2009, Independence Platinum is forging ahead with plans. Independence has hired TWP to complete a bankable economic evaluation on the proposed $200 million ConRoast smelter. The 2-megawatt (MW) pilot test on the smelter has proven successful, and based on the results, the 10-MW commercial-scale facility would live up to its reputation with its breakthrough in PGM smelting.

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