Currently in production, IM’s August issue features an article on some of the many innovations aimed at helping the industry meet the unprecedented demand for copper that will continue over many years to come. A new agreement between MIPAC and Xstrata Technology formalises long-term relationship for delivery of ISASMELTTM and ISACONVERTTM increasing value for smelting customers. This is a formalisation of their long-standing relationship. “Our two companies have worked closely for more than a decade and MIPAC has an intimate knowledge of the ISASMELTTM process.” said Philip Arthur, General Manager – Pyrometallurgy at Xstrata Technology. “MIPAC adds significant value to the end solution delivered to our customers. They have been, and will remain, our first choice supplier of electrical, instrumentation and process control requirements for ISASMELT and ISACONVERT projects.”
“MIPAC will assist Xstrata Technology to market, scope, engineer, commission and develop ISASMELT and ISACONVERT projects. Over many years we have formed a solid relationship and we consistently exceed customer expectations with ISASMELT and associated plant wide control projects.” said, Eddie De Rivera, Managing Director, MIPAC
MIPAC has been involved in most ISASMELT projects since the early 1990s, including two PACE Zenith award-winning projects – the major modernisation of the Kazzinc zinc, lead and copper metallurgical plant complex in Kazakhstan (see IM August) and the plant-wide smelter upgrade for Mopani Copper Mines in Zambia.
MIPAC is a provider of process control, instrumentation and electrical engineering solutions. MIPAC specialises in industries that require continuous process control such as minerals and metal processing.
Xstrata Technology claims that “since its introduction to the marketplace, ISASMELT has had the highest adoption rate of any base metals smelting process. ISASMELT is a submerged lance smelting process and has made a significant impact on the global metals industry, allowing new operations to get into production quickly and cost-effectively and making it possible for Brownfield operations to improve profitability and meet high environmental standards.”
ISACONVERT is the latest innovation from the ISASMELT team, delivering a solution for continuous copper converting. It provides an alternative to traditional batch converting operations with lower capital cost and is an attractive option due to its flexibility to treat solid feed and efficiently capture SO2 and reduce in-plant fugitive emissions.
